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THE DAILY GLOBE
IS PUBLISHED EVERY DAY
At tlie Globe Unildinff.
LOR. FOURTH AND CEDAR STS.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES.
Payable In Advance.
Daily nnd Sunday, per month .BO
Daily and Sunday, 6 months. $2.75
Daily and Sunday, one year. ..55.00
Daily only, per month *°
Dally only, nix month* f2.5J{5
Lull}- ouly, one year. ...... .94.00
Sunday only, one year 9 1.50
Weekly, one year $1.00
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Complete files or the Ulob-j always
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TODAY'S WEATHER.
WASHINGTON, Nov. Forecast
for Sunday: For Minnesota: Fair;
warmer: southwesterly winds.
For Wisconsin: Fair, except prob
ably showers In the morning on the
i-oasts; southwest winds.
For North and South Dakota:
Threatening weather and probably
showers; warmer; fresh, southwest
winds.
Por Montana: Fair; slightly warm
er; westerly winds.
TEMPERATURES.
Place. Tea I Place. Tern.
Buffalo M-48 Montreal 40-46
Boston 44-52 New Orleans.. 62-66
Cheyenne 18-56 New York ....46-50
Chicago 38-40 Pittsburg .. ..4S-52
Cincinnati 46-54
DAILY MEANS.
Barometer, 29.53; thermometer. 37; rel
ative humidity. 80; wind, west: weather,
cloudy; maximum thermometer, 41;
minimum thermometer, 33; daily range,
8; amount of rainfall or melted snow
in last twenty-four hours, 0.
RIVER AT 8 A. M.
Danger Height of
Line. Water. Change.
St. Paul 14 1.5 0.0
La Crosse ..10 1.5 - »0.1
Davenport ..15 0.6 0.0
St. Louis ....30 2.6 0.0
•Rise.
Note— Barometer corrected for tem
perature and elevation.
P. F. LYONS,
Observer.
JUDGE KELLY'S DECISION.
The decision filed by Judge Kelly
yesterday in the suit of the state of
Minnesota against the Great North
ern railway, to prevent its proposed
agreement with the Northern Pa
cific bondholders, is probably the
most important document ever placed
on record in our district court. The
effect of it is to sustain the position
taken by the state in every particu
lar; to grant a writ of injunction
against the intended consolidation;
to "declare the charter rights of the
Great Northern company subject to
amendment by future legislation,
due regard being had for actual
vested rights and proper reparation
made where these are impaired. The
iecision stands, until reversed, as the
law by which the railroad companies
in question must be governed. Far
more important than that, it will, if
sustained by the superior courts, re
main as the most important prece
dent in this state for construing the
rights and privileges of railroad com
panies, claimed under charter enact
ments.
The facts dealt with by the decis- j
ion, and the sustained argument by
which its conclusions are reached,
are too voluminous for even a re
capitulation here. They may be ex
amined in full in the text of the de
cision itself. Brit the bearing of the
general principles followed .upon the
relation of the legislative body to cor
porations acting under special char
ters is its most important feature.
As to the practical questions raised
at the outset, they are disposed of
quickly and easily by an application
of the principles of ordinary sense
and logic. The contention that the
arrangement contemplated was not a
consolidation, but a mere traffic
agreement, is fencing with words.
The statement of what was proposed
to be done covers the definition of
practical consolidation. So the pre
mise that the Great Northern and
the Northern Pacific are actually par
allel and competing lines stands with
out dispute. So also it would be idle
to deny that the traffic agreement or
consolidation had in view is con
trary to the general policy sought
to be established by the people of the
state, and expressed more or less
fully and positively by various acts
of their legislature. We reach the
vital points of the case when we
come to the question whether the
company's charter conveys a vested
right to consolidate, and whether that
right is actually indefeasible, not
subject to revision or limitation by
any future exercise of legislative
power.
We shall not assume to enter into
any discussion of these involved and
technical points, requiring a nice con
struction of charters and statutes,
and a still nicer application of the
doctrine of vested rights and con
tract obligations. . It is sufficient to
note that the court finds against
the company in both respects. It
declares, after a careful review of
the language of the original charter,
that the right to consolidate, in the
sense of this consolidation with the
Northern Pacific, was not conferred
by the special act of 1856; that the
act of 1865 conferred no greater rights
than were carried in the original sec
tion, and that if the intention had
actually been otherwise, still the
laws of 1874 and of 1881 do apply to
the company and limit its authority.
The words "not destroying or im
pairing the vested rights of said
corporation" are held not to apply
to incorporeal rights, and hence do
not debar future legislation with ref
erence to rights conveyed by the
franchise. The decision thus directly
contravenes at every point that ren
dered by Judge Sanborn in the
Pearsall case, and acts as a com
plete bar, unless it should be set
aside, to the arrangement proposed
to be entered into between these two
great corporations.
The most important aspect of this
THE SAINT PAUL DAILY GLOBE: SUNDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 17, 1895.— TWENTY-FOUR PAGES.
finding, by all odds, is that which
bears upon the asserted immunity of
chartered rights from future disturb
ance. In this debatable ground it is
necessary to steer with great care the
course of justice between two ex
tremes. On the one side is the dan
ger of permitting a solemn agreement
to be destroyed, after one of the par
ties to it has performed faithfully his
part. It was to prevent this, so com
mon in the experience of states, that
the constitution forbade an impair
ment of the obligation of contracts.
And that, clause has been construed.
generally to the protection of vested
rights. On the other side is the dan
ger of permitting a body of men who
hold power for a brief time, a single
legislature that meets and passes out
of existence in a few months, to tie
the hands of all future genera-.
tions. Can they, under the guise of a
contract, which forthwith by' an ac
ceptance on one side hardens into a
vested right, destroy the power of
the people to manage their affairs for
all time to come, and make an im
mutable system of that which a later
generation may see to be contrary
to public policy? The courts of the
future will be found to give more
consideration to this second question;
and public policy will have its place
as at least an interpreter of the con
tent of vested rights.
Practically, the decision rendered
may be taken as putting a probable
termination to the negotiations that
have been in progress. While it will
doubtless be carried to a higher
tribunal, as it should be, since the
questions involved are as important
as were ever raised in any case in
our history, the time that must elapse
before a final settlement by the su
preme court of the United States,
even If that were to take a differ
ent view, which is not probable,
would be too great to make a permis
sion to consolidate at that date de
sirable. Long before that time the
affairs of the Northern Pacific must
be adjusted on some basis; and the
opportunity that has existed for a
consolidation of the two systems will
have passed away. In its general re
lation to public affairs and its defi
nition of the policy of the state, there
is no question that the decision will
be acceptable to the people of the
Northwest. The legislative acts pro
hibiting consolidation of competing
lines were the expression of a con
viction among the people which has
deepened rather than lessened in
intensity. , Both by reason of its
practical effects and of its vital bear
ing on questions of judicial inter
pretation and legislative authority,
this decision will be read in this and
in other states with intense eagerness
and general satisfaction, because re
garded as tending to uphold, in the
long run, the best interests of the
corporations as well as of the people.
NEXT YEAR'S PAVING WORK.
On one subject we think there Is
no difference of opinion among the
people of St. Paul. They are satis
fied and delighted with the new
pavements that have been laid tliis
year. Even to the eye alone they
tell their story of a city prospering,
improving, made attractive to the
visitor and better adapted to the
transactions of its own business. It
is a pleasure to walk on the streets
of St. Paul where the asphalt pave
ments have been laid, and see the
tide of traffic roll swiftly and smooth
ly by. The people who own prop
erty on these streets, and those whose
business premises front upon them,
have felt the effect of improved con
ditions. There is but one word in the
public mouth concerning the asphalt
pavements, and that is a word of
praise. It is a common expression
with all sorts of people in conversa
tion that if such pavements had been
put down in St. Paul five years ago,
it would have been worth millions
of dollars to the city.
The good work should now go on.
Merely for the sake of uniformity, it
is desirable that the other streets in
the business district should be paved
with asphalt as rapidly as the work
can be done. We may lay aside all
questions of the relative merits of
different paving materials. We have
every reason to be abundantly, satis
fied with asphalt. Bßurt r even if we
were convinced that some other ma
terial would answer the purpose
equally well, it would be a mis
take to experiment with it, although
it might be used at a somewhat
smaller cost. The effect of a hetero
geneous mixture of different pave
ments in a city whose business area
is as compact and as well defined
as that of St. Paul would be ex
tremely bad. Within this basin, that
is bounded by hills on every side, we
should have one coherent and uni
form system of pavements. Every
foot of the old wooden block, that re
mains in place detracts something
from the value to the whole city
of our recent improvements. Let all
these business streets be covered
with asphalt, and St. Paul will be
come noted among the cities of the
country, as Washington has been, for
the beauty of its streets.
This is the time of year when
paving projects for next season
should be brought under considera
tion. It is too general a habit here
to wait until the spring opens before
beginning the formal round of legal
proceedings that must be concluded
before a pavement can be laid on
any street. To pass the preliminary
order through both houses of the
council, meeting at different dates
and requiring reports from the com
mittees on streets, to send these to
the board of public works, to have
hearings for property owners, where
the whole matter must* be discussed,
to pass the final order, to advertise
for bids and to let the contract, re
quire weeks -or : months. '. All these
preliminaries should be attended to
during the' winter/ If they, are de
layed until summer opens, it needs
the utmost haste to get pavements
down before snow flies, even where
all parties are agreed that the work
should be done. As there are at
present only two concerns which en
gage in the business of laying asphalt
pavements on a large scale, .their
facilities are; likely to be overtaxed
if they cannot begin until the sea
son is half over.
The whole subject of street paving
in the business district should , be
gone over by the council carefully
as. soon as possible. We know al
ready that there are several streets^
to be paved- next year. The list
should be enlarged as far as this can
be done without imposing unneces
sary burdens upon the owners of
property. Whereyer. their consent
can be obtained to substitute asphalt
for a pavement that is now in place,
and not in the best condition, the
council and the board of public works
should do their part without delay, so
that a contract may be let and the
companies be realy to go to work on
the streets at the approach of spring.
We hope that another year will 'see"
a large increase in the mileage of
asphalt pavements in the business
district of St. Paul. We can assure
the owners of property, even though
the cost may seem a heavy tax, and
even though the old pavements may
be made to last a few years longer,
that it will be the best investment
that they ever made. We want all
the new paving possible completed
next year. To secure that it is neces
sary to begin at once. -
IT IS TOO DANGEROUS.
It is not too much to say that the
enthusiasm at the football game yes
terday between the teams of the
universities of Minnesota and Wis
consin was the greatest ever known
at a sporting event in this state.
But, after it is all over, and those
who saw the great contest for it was
a great athletic event — come to think
the affair over in sober earnest, but
one sensible conclusion can be
reached; and that is that the foot
ball game of 1895 is but little less
brutal than that of 1885, and far too
rough to hold its place among legiti
mate sports. The danger to life and
limb from the hour the ball is placed
in play until time is called is awful,
and the spectators are frequently
thrown into periods of painful sus
pense over the fate of a player.
Without question the greatest piece
of work yesterday, considered strict
ly from a football standpoint, was
that where a Wisconsin man had
secured the ball, cleared the field, and
was running unobstructed directly
to the goal of Minnesota. Suddenly
out from the bunch of players ran a
fleet-footed Minnesota man. Darting
into the air head foremost like a
fish, he grasped the Wisconsin run
ner by the legs, and the pair fell in
a heap. That play no doubt saved
the game, and it was greeted with
such applause that it was impossible,
because of the din, for the game to
proceed for some time, but at what
peril that daring leap was made. It
might easily have resulted in a brok
en neck for one of the players, and a
broken arm . or collar bone for the
other."*..''".*:-.....-. \,yy
This was merely an incident, and
not an exaggerated one, of what
was going on all the afternoon. One
man had his head so badly cut that
he bled from the wound for an hour
and yet, urged on by his companions
because of his strength as a player,
he remained at his post. The game,
though very popular and full . of
chances for brilliant work, is far too
full of risks to life and limb. As
played, it is even more brutal than
the prize fight. It should go down
with pugilism or be so modified that
the man who engages in this violent
kind of exercise will not have to take
his life in his hand every time he
goes on the field.
AMERICAN FLUNKIES.
Some of the gibes which we have
enjoyed at the expense of the servil
ity of the English people toward
their aristocracy can now be turned
against us with good effect. Scarcely
anything can more disgust a loyal
American than the attitude of his
countrymen toward the young Duke
of Marlborough and his bride. The
flunkeyism which is ingrained in the
middle and lower classes of Great
Britain is far less reprehensible than
the imitation article in which the
people of New York, high and low,
have indulged. The Briton has the
excuse of tradition and precedent.
To "love a lord" is second nature to
him, and is in accord with the ideas
that he has cherished from birth. But
to bow and cringe and stand with
mouth agape before the mere pos
sessor of a title is, in an American
citizen, something worse than dis
loyal. From the day that the Duke
of Marlborough landed in this coun
try to his departure yesterday, he
has been the recipient of unsought
attentions which should send him
away filled with an utter contempt
for the American people and a firm
disbelief in their democracy. No
where in the British isles could he
have been worshiped as servilely as
he has been in the metropolis of this
republic.
He is, according to common report,
a young man of estimable personal
qualities, with nothing more to rec
ommend him. He is neither better
nor worse than thousands of young
men who walk the streets of New
York on business unnoticed every
day. He has nothing, good or bad,
to give his personality prominence.
He comes of a house whose escapades
are notorious. In a country like the
United States it might be expected
that he would be met simply with a
kindly friendliness, aimed to cover
•the misfortune of his lineage by
unobtrusive regard. Instead of that,
the mere fact that he bears the name
of the Duke of Marlborough has
kept him surrounded with fawning
toadies during every moment of his
stay upon American soil. This has
extended, we are informed, from
what is called the highest to the low
est rank of society. It is said that,
at the banquet given to him before
his marriage, the speeches made by
those present were fulsomely disgust
ing. They were addressed to him as
if he were the conquerer of an em-
pire, or a great leader of the world's
progress. in science. or in moral re-
form.. They covered him with flat-
tery which, as addressed to a boy,
was so inappropriate as to amount
to almost an insult. The best testi
mony to the young fellow's manlU
ness is that he met these sycophants
with a simple straight-forwardness
that should have covered them with
shame. y- 'Ay .-Ja.d.
It ..was . natural enough that such
an event as his marriage with "tin-
daughter of one of our millionaires
should attract public attention.- J&ut
since" that time the young couple
have never been able to appear in
public without gathering about them
a wild-eyed, vulgar crowd. The'-box
in which they sat at the horse s,ho\v
in New York was besieged by a mob
of curious people. The managers .of.
a steamship line were obliged' to
make special regulations to keep' the
populace from overrunning the
steamer on which they embarked
for their return trip. Not the kindly
interest which people feel in youth
and beauty newly joined for life is
the secret of this attention, but the
curious desire to be associated, even
at a distance and by the empty adul
ation of the eye, with the possessor
of a title. ' Ay A
It- has been an experience thor
oughly discreditable to the people
engaged in it, and one that must send
this self-respecting young English
man back to his country feeling for
America a contempt too deep for
words. . We do not need to hunt for
foreign entanglements for a* text
from which to preach Americanism,
when we have before our eyes such
betrayal and insult to our institu
tions, and the deep faith that un
derlies them, as is contained in the
prostration of New York society, and
New York non-society, before a young
man who happens to bear one of
those prefixes to his name which the
fathers of our country held in such
abhorrence that they placed a per
petual prohibition of their use by
any American in the constitution of
the United States.
DEBTS MUST BE PAID.
The decision of Judge Kerr, that
•the city is indebted to the police force
for -the amount of their unpaid sal-
aries, with interest since these be
came due, is couched in terms which
express the indignation that all hon
est men feel at a refusal to pay for
services faithfully performed. Where
men have been in the employ of the
city at a stipulated salary, where
pay rolls have been passed by the
council allowing them the mon**y for
a number of months in 'the year,
where the men have not been dis-
charged, but have remained in the
public service, and have gone with-
out their money afterward solely be-
cause there were no funds available,
the debt is not canceled. It remains
as a legal as well as a moral obliga
tion. No court could hold otherwise,
and no right-thinking citizen desired
any other conclusion to be reached.
The decision confirms the position
taken by the Globe from the be-
ginning, and explained length a
few days' ago, 'that claims for service
contracted for and duly rendered
constitute the "arrearages due' and
unpaid" which are specifically re-
ferred to in the charter. The pitiful
plea that these men, who had been
•hired to do a certain work and had
done it, could be Chiseled out of their
pay by a forced interpretation of
the charter, is exposed to the public
contempt that it merits. The idea of
our controller, that delinquent ,tax
receipts must he credited to present
account only, until a surplus accumu
lates, leaving old obligations dishon
ored, is swept away by a clean breath
of wholesome common sense and hon
esty. Judge Kerr characterizes it
properly when he says that the court
will not encourage an attempt 'to
defraud men, by technical quibbling,
of their just dues. We rejoice heart-
ily at this enforcement of honesty,
which is in no way inconsistent with
the strictest economy. 'Let us now
have the money collected from taxes
levied to pay these very salaries ap
plied to the purpose for which it was
intended, and for which the taxpay
ers contributed it. And let us hope
that hereafter, in standing for the
strict letter of the law, we may hear
no more of the idea of keeping men
from their honestly earned wages be
cause a forced and ridiculous inter
pretation of the charter was thought
to make it possible. The court has
given us good riddance of this pre
tentious humbug and monstrous in
justice.
ANTED— A REQUEST OF WINGS.
Of making many books there is
less end just now than at any pre
vious time in the world's history.
The lists of publishers' announce
ments for autumn are longer • than
they have ever been, and if even 50
per cent of the fall books are moder
ately successful it will be a golden'
year for the publishing houses. As
to what kind of a year it promises.
to be for the reader, that is, unfort
unately, quite another matter. Y-It'J
has seemed of late as if in maVl*ng
arrangements to meet the wants' of ,
different book-buyers the publishers,
had entirely overlooked that large
and important class of people Who
read for stimulus; who want, some-
how, if ever so slightly, to be lifted
from the ground. In the days when
books were greater events than they
are now, this was a result more fre-
accomplished, and literary
critics are casting about uneasily
to discover, if they may, why there
is so little "lift" in current litera
ture. Mr. Bok, writing in the Forum,
thinks that it is because the success-
ful authors of the day are under the
yoke of the almighty dollar. : Each
writes one book with a thought for
art and an untrammeled spirit. It
succeeds, and his subsequent books
are written to sell on the strength of
his one fresh, true piece of work.
Mr. Hunt, in the Critic, ranks above
love of money the iconoclastic influ
ence of science on our old ideals, and
disappointment with the inadequate
fulfillment of the promises of democ
racy as reasons for the decay of
spirituality in our literature.
But whatever cause one assigns,
the condition remains the same. Ma
terial progress has put within our
reach" everything but the things we
want. It is easy enough to go around
the world, but as hard to get to
heaven as it ever was. And in lit
erature there are books for every
.conceivable purpose save that of
mental and spiritual . stimulation.
Superficial pessimism is an easy mat
ter, but it is hard to believe. that the
earth is practically bereft of writ
ers who can make us forget that we
are dust. It is easier to think that
there is a decay of appreciation of
spirituality on the part of the pub
lishers than to arraign our whole civ
ilization because it produces so few
of those volumes which to read is to
grow robust in spirit. Surely the
books we want are being written by
somebody somewhere. We lift our
voice to proclaim that there is gold
and glory in store for the writer
and the publisher who shall realize
speedily that there is an army of
readers eagerly expectant of books
with wings.
A FATAL ADMISSION.
The advocates of woman suffrage
should do something with Mrs. Mary
A. Livermore. She has made recent
ly the following statement in explan
ation of the failure of the women of
Massachusetts to vote:
"Do you wonder why so many of the
women who registered did* not go to
the polls? I'll tell you why they did
not. They were afraid of their hus
bar.ds. It meant a sacrifice of happi
ness, domestic happiness in many
cases, to go to the polls."
• No mere man, and mo opponent of
the principle of woman suffrage,
would have dared to make such a
statement as this, even if he believed
it to be true. Suppose that Mrs.
Livermore is right. Suppose that
this is the explanation of the com
plete fiasco in the Massachusetts
election. Suppose that the women
of that intelligent and advanced
commonwealth live in a state of ab
ject terror under the coercion of mar-
ital rule. Probably the men of Mas
sachusetts think concerning woman
suffrage about as the men of other
states do. As a rule, then, we must
accept Mrs. Livermore's proposition;
that husbands, at any rate, and just
possibly brothers and lovers, do not
like to have women vote. This
makes it necessary for those who
would continue the woman suffrage
campaign to take the position that
the right to cast a ballot is a more
blessed thing tha^i domestic happi
ness. We are to believe, speaking
again on the authority of Mrs. Liver-
more, that woman suffrage is to be
bought at the price of domestic dis
cord.
Will either men or women think
this worth while? Admit, if you
please, that the - attitude of man
is an unreasonable one. Consider
only the fact that it Is his attitude
and is likely to be. Is there anything
in the woman suffrage proposition,
is there amy practical outcome of
woman suffrage, through her parti-
cipation in public affairs, that lis
likely to bring adequate compensa
tion for unhappiness in the home?
While entertaining a doubt whether
the men of Massachusetts did actu-
ally hold the rod over their women
folk, or deter them by moral sua
sion from going to the polls, we do
believe that Mrs. Livermore's diag
nosis is substantially correct. There
is no reasonable doubt that the as
sumption by women of this particu
lar form of public attitude would be
at the cost of the home life. The fam
, ily would lose, necessarily, that
which was given to the public. Even
leaving out of account the tension
between 'man and woman associated
; in the intimacy of the family rela
tion, if each was desperately in ear-
nest on opposite sides of some public
question, the simple principle of the
conservation of energy remains.
. A force that is expended in one
direction cannot be utilized in an
other. The place of the woman in
the home would be changed, and her
work there lessen and deteriorate to
the extent by which her energies were
absorbed by a political act and duty
that, rightfully performed, requires
the devotion of years of time and
the daily observation and study of
public affairs. Mrs. Livermore's ad
mission constitutes the most con
vincing and unanswerable practical
argument against woman suffrage
that has come to public notice.
WHERE JUSTICE FAILS!
Gov. Atkinson, of Georgia, proposes
to reduce, if not entirely prevent,
lynching in his state by the enact-
ment of a law which will give to the
heirs of the person executed by a
mob a right of action against the
, county, in which it occurs, to recover
i in money damages the loss which
' they have sustained. His idea is that
' the mob seeking vengeance on the
supposed criminal is generally com-
posed of the irresponsible minority,
j the excitable few, whom the con
> servative and responsible majority
permit to act "because no liability at-
taches to them. If, however, the
r' property interests of a community
were made to pay indemnity to the
relatives of the deceased, the gov
. ernor thinks that they would be
! prompt to interfere with and pre
"vent lynbhir.gs.
1 This proposition of the governor
calls attention to a point at which
justice utterly breaks down. If so
ciety is liable to the survivors of the
man who is made a victim of mob
fury, why is society not equally re
sponsible to the relatives of the man
who is wrongfully executed with all
the formalities of the law? j The
books are full of cases where the
victims of false or circumstantial cvi-
dence have expiated upon the scaf
fold a crime they never committed.
Then there is that much larger class
of unfortunate people who have been
arrested, tried, convicted and Im
prisoned for crimes of which they
were i innocent, and which . were:sub
sequently found to have been com
mitted by other persons. Sometimes
it. is a, chain of. plausible circums'taa
tial evidence that binds the unfort
unate and sends him to a felon's cell.
Sometimes deliberate and willful per
jury makes him its victim. Whatever
the means, the result Is the same.
A blasted reputation, the deprivation
of years of industrial opportunity,
and, when some fortuitous circum
stance establishes the Innocence of
the convict, the state, society incar
nate, callously opens the prison gates
and sends him penniless out Into the
world, handicapped by his record,
feeling that its whole duty to the
man had been fulfilled by granting
him liberty, without a thought of rec
ompense for the monstrous wrong
that he had suffered.
But this is not all of the gruesome
picture. When the unhappy victim
of law's uncertainty and justice's
misdirected blow is a husband and
father, elements of pathos come in
that appeal to our sympathies and
stir "our indignation. There is the
wife deprived of the breadwinner,
and the phildren left fatherless.
Death would be kinder. It would,
at least, leave no badge of disgrace
to be worn by the survivors. Sym
pathies that would carry aid to the
widow and children are cool to the
wife and children of the felon. The
children are branded with something
of the infamy that attaches to the
father. The conditions of life, al-
ways severe, harden for them. And
for this incalculable injury society,
mistakenly committing it in self-dc-
fense, makes no reparation in any
form whatever. It does what it would
permit no citizen to do. He who un
justifiably does injury to body or
character of his fellow, must answer
in damages; but when, in these cases,
man in the aggregate does grievous
hurt to his fellow, there is a heart
less denial of remedy. It is a stigma
upon our civilization, a blemish on
our boasted justice, a _ barbarism
worthy of the unspeakable Turk.
THE NEW UTAH PROBLEM.
For a great many years the ter
ritory of Utah furnished to the peo
ple of 'this country one of their most
perplexing problems. Polygamy,
practiced by 'the leaders* of the Mor
mon church and defended by them as
a part of their -religious belief, (re
sisted stubbornly the force of public
opinion and the law-making power
of the United States. So difficult was
this -problem that congress after con-
gress wresltled with it in vain, and a
commission, on which were many of
the ablest and most eminent men in
the country, backed by all the power
of the United States courts, was
finally appointed to enforce obedience
to the law and to wipe out the un
clean *t!hiing. To outward appear
ances, at least, that problem has
been solved. Whether in good faith,
or as a matter of political- exped
iency, tine Mormon church has yield-
ed to the pressure of public opinion,
and the new constitution is assumed
to voice the sentiment of Mormon
and Gentile alike, declaring the per
manent renunciation of polygamy by
the people of Utah. We may assume
that this is settled. We cannot be
sure of it. Under the guarantee of
statehood, there is no power in the
federal government 'to interfere with
the domestic Institutions of Utah.
The problem of the past may be
raised again at any time, like a spec-
ter, to distress the future.
But there is' a problem of -the pres
ent in Utah which. In some of its
aspeats, is even more serious than the
practice of polygamy. We have in
that community the first well-defined
instance in this country of a prac
tical consolidation •of church and
state. It is no secret that the Mor
mon hierarchy is absolute master of
the destinies of Utah. It is difficult
for people who have not examined
the Mormon system to understand
what this means. It is a far differ
ent and more dangerous thing than
It would be if a state were under the
conitlrol of any one of the great re
ligious denominations with which we
are familiar. There is no church in
existence in the United States, Cath
olic or Protestant, which assumes or
exercises such control over the acts
of its members as that possessed by
the rulers of the Mormon body.
The system which Joseph Smith in
stituted, and which has been per
fected by his successors, contem
plates the absolute control of the in
dividual toy his religious superioas.
This control extends not only to
moral conduct, but 'to every act of
his daily life. The church Is arbi
ter of the family, and directs, as
far as possible, the relations of its
members to one another and the
unions by which new families are
fcnmed. It extends to the acquisition
and disposition of property. The
church, by its tithing system, declares
'Itself the feudal lord of the work
main, and directs what proportion of
the fruits of his labor he may retain
by its grace and by its bounty. The
church is a factor in the commercial
weald, and the great institutions of
the Zicn Mercantile association are
to be found everywhere throughout
Utah. That the church assumes to
direct the political action of the in
dividual as well is shown by all its
past history- That this is no .mere
tradiittion, to be laid aside like po
lygamy under the new order of
things, appears from the recent elec
tion, which was controlled amd de
termined throughout by the open or
understood wishes of the Mormon
managers.
We shall have, then, as soon as the
president issues a proclamation ad
mitting Utah to the Union, a state
in' which the legislature, the public
officiate aad the local courts will till
be nothing more than the puppets of
a secret and central controlling pow
er. The Mormon church is the state
of Utah. Suppose, as we have said.
that It is willing to 'relinquish po
lygamy, and we still have a political
community in which •"ill public ques
tions will be pa-coed upon by one of
the most fanatical ami rigorous re
ligiDT'S despcti-rms <.':■?.■. tho world has
ever seen. Thjs c-..- -..-■.*!•* the new
and graver -problem to which we have
referred, It is an anomaly hr the
American Uni-on.- lit -sets on one
■slide all our accepted principles of tai
dividual liberty. It constitutes a po-'
Lit lead commonwealth in which there
is mo such 'thing, properly speaking,
except among an inconslderabl*i mi
nority, a.* public op'.n'jcn. It invents
with aiM the powers and privileges ci?
a filiate the small central body that
determines the action and governs
the fortunes of 'the Mormon body.
We have, Jin effect, not the' state of
Utah, but the state of Mormon to
deal with. What will be the effect
of introducing this alien element into
our public life remakis to be ©?en.
It to probable that such an' experi
ment will give .rise to graver prob
lems in our future than any Which
grew out of the stubborn resistance
of the hierarchy to our institutions
and our laws at a time when we
possessed the power, which we have
now surrendered, to enforce compli
ance with them.
IS DEATH WORTH DYING?
The habit of helping itself out of a
world in which there seems no good
reason for remaining is certainly
growing upon humanity. The statis
ticians say spring is the- suicidal sea
son, but if one may judge from the
length of the sickening column the
metropolitan journals head "Tired of
Life" the disease is making all sea
sons of the year increasingly its own.
The author of "Social Evolution"
practically tells us that it is impos
sible for life to seem worth while to
the human reason, and the whole
question of the value of existence
has been a topic of popular debate
for the last fifteen years. The value
of death, however, perhaps for lack
of data, has never been seriously dis
cussed. Of course, in the things of
the spirit, no man's notions are
final; but Prof. James, the Harvard
psychologist, offers in a recent maga
zine article a suggestion which it
may interest people who are tired of
life to consider. The idea is not a
new one, but it has never before made
its appearance sealed with the ap
proval of such an acknowledged ex
pert in matters of the soul. It is to
the effect that the existence of spirit
is conditioned by the principles which
we see paramount in our material
life. The struggle for existence fol
lowed by the survival of the fittest,
and only of the fittest, is probably an
all-embracing law, and under it this
despised life cf ours tests not only
our adaptability to earth, but also
our capability for life in a spiritual
world. From this point of view the
possession of a soul is not a birth
right, but an achievement; and to
surrender voluntarily this present ex
istence is to take flight from the only
field upon which we can prove our
title to a spiritual existence. Suicide
is a confession of defeat and of un
fitness not only for the life that now
is, but for that which is to come. It
is the surrender of mortality and im
mortality alike.
If this supposition is valid, it will
be conceded generally thait volun
tary death is not worth while. An-
nihilation is too high a price to pay
for rest. And so we come around
again by the path of scientific proba
bility to the old ground religion ha 3
always held, that suicide is self-mur
der. And this is but one of the many
instances in which of late scientific
assumptions have been found to but-
tress religious preconceptions. Some-
times, indeed, it almost seems to the
thoughtful mind as if the final func
tion of science might prove to be the
making of the ten commandments
and the gospel as intelligible to the
human reason as they have always
been to the human heart.
"LESE MAJESTE."
Among the European dispatches
printed in Friday's Globe was one
whose significance was out of all
proportion to the space accorded it
in the European news. It was the
announcement that Herr Liebknecht,
editor, deputy and leader of the So-
cial Democrats of Germany, had
been convicted of lese majeste and
sentenced to four months' imprison-
ment. The offense was contained in
a free criticism, in a recent speech, of
the policies of the emperor. It is
the outcome of the recrudescence,
under the reign of this young, im
perious Hotspur who has succeeded
to his conservative grandfather, of
the idea of the divinity of kings and
of their right to rule. It is the es
sence of paternalism, the incarna
tion in secular law of the command
of obedience to parents. It is the
idea so frequently expressed by the
emperor that he is the state. "Who
opposes me I will crush." Strictly,
lese majeste is any crime committed
against the sovereign; but under
William, it is the expression of opin-
ions distasteful to him.
Existing laws are not sufficiently
stringent. There is yet too much
liberty of speech to suit the em-
peror. He would carry the repressive
measures begun by Bismarck still
further. His ministry attempted to
enlarge the offense of lese majeste,
to make it include words disrespect- !
ful to the emperor, the royal fam- •
ily, tire church or religion; and the I
echoes of the battle in the reichstag '
over it, in which the ministry was !
defeated, still reverberate. But ■
present law is sufficient to send to j
prison the leader of a party casting j
between 2,000,000 and 3,000,000 votes, i
for criticising the public policies of !
the emperor. It is difficult for an ;
American, accustomed not only to \
I freedom of speech, but to a license i
which often oversteps the bounds of !
decency, to understand the possibil
ity of conditions such as exist in j
Germany, which permit imprison- i
ment of a man for the expression of
opinions offensive to the head of the '
government, because differing from '
his. It is still more incomprehensible j
to such a one how, with all history i
before him to refute his position, the |
emperor should persist in the policy !
of repression of speech. Experience I
everywhere tolls that speech, like ■
• j
gunpowder, is most dangerous when
confined, and least so when allowed |
to spend its force on the empty air. !
Repression stirs resistance. Force i
invites opposing force. Compression
ends in explosion ; that shatters the
machinery of oppression. Safety
lies only in liberty.
The recent history of Germany il
lustrates this. The leaven of democ
racy has long been working there.
Influenced by its paternalistic en
vironment it has taken the direction
of state socialism. This was inevi
table. It was the other, extreme of
the existing order, the substitution
of the state for the autocrat. But
the leaven that is causing the tumult
is the spirit of individualism. It was
to coddle this that Bismarck em
barked the state in his schemes of
state socialism. Discovering that he
had whetted without satisfying the
appetite, he began repressive meas
ures. Socialism must be stamped out.
William continued the process. As
the oppressive force increased, the
resisting force rose to meet it. Ac
tion was equaled by reaction. So
cialism throve under persecution,— '*'
Socialistic deputies rapidly Increased
in the reichstag, and the voters rose
from a few thousand to million:-;.
This conviction of Liebknecht .will
but add fuel to the flame. The blood
of the martyrs has ever been the
seed of the church, and liberty has
ever had its roots enriched by the
blood of men who have suffered and
died for it. It is this that makes the
event so briefly noted one of deep
significance. It indicates that a feel
ing is rising in Germany that sooner
or later will leave no majesty to of
fend.
We are not a bit surprised to see
that John W. Foster is present at
the foreign missions meeting, in New
York. John's ears perk up at the
mention of foreign missions as da
those of an old war-horse when the
trumpet sounds, or as do those of
the pigs in the pasture when the
"pig, pig" of the strong-lunged farm
er assures them that there is swill
waiting them in the trough. John
knows a foreign mission when he
sees it. He has dealt in them exten
sively. He has found them a profit
able business. His latest one to
China is said to have netted him
$200,000. But he has made a mis
take this time. The foreign missions
he is addressing do not pay large
salaries. No government, with ple
thoric purse, backs them. The emol
uments are scanty and the work
arduous and the honors nil. We ap
prehend that John will lose interest
in the subsequent proceedings when
he ascertains that these foreign mis
sions are not missions to Spain or
China or Japan.
If it is true, as stated in the local
discussion of our schools, that pupils
in them cannot compute interest cor
rectly, they can at least say that, as
a practical matter, it amounts to
little because there is that senator
of the United States who asserted
that the sheep in his state had been
reduced in number 300 per cent. And
there is that representative in con
gress who said that a tax had been
reduced 150 per cent, while one-third
of the original tax was retained. This,
of course, is no justification for any
lack of thoroughness in instruction
today, but it is something of a re
flection upon those "good old meth
ods" which prevailed years ago, when
instruction was almost entirely con
fined to the three "R's" and before
the era of expansion set in.
Condensation- it the information
contained in th* Pioneer Press' series
of articles on lakes: When it rains
it is wet. * When it is wet for a long
period lakes and rivers rise. When
it doesn't rain it is dry. When it ia
dry for a long period lakes and riv
ers fall. There is a never-failing pe
riodicity in wet and dry periods. Ev
ery long dry spell, during which lakes
and rivers fall, is followed by a long
wet spell, during which they rise
again.
Not all the chumps have been
caged. The car containing Katie
Emmett's wardrobe was hauled on
fire at great speed two miles to a
side track. The flames were so
fanned that the car was almost con
sumed when the siding was reached.
Shelby M. Cullom has tied his pres
i idential boom to that of John R. Tan«
• ! ner. for governor. Cullom Isn't very
; choice about the company he keeps.
j Tanner is decidedly a politician of
i the Qnay-Pla/tt-Claikson stamp.
Once in a while "the watchdog of
the treasury" proves the most ex
pensive canine In the kennel.
DISAPPOINTED BRIDE.
; Dost Man Falls <<» Get a License
nnd the Wedding In Postponed.
BALTIMORE, Bid., Nov. 16.— A1l
! arrangements had been completed
i for a wedding here today. The
| church was filled with people, the
* couple to be' married had arrived in
: the vestibule of the church, tire pro
' cession to the altar . was about to
be arranged, when the best man
rushed in and nearly prostrated the
j bride with the startling informal
; tion that he could not get the mar-
riage license.
The groom became angry.the bride
! elect burst into tears, and the mm!
-! ister had. to notify the friends of th*
; couple that owing to the sudden
! death of John T. Gray, clerk of thi
j court of common pleas, the necessarj
! document could not be secured.
| The wedding had to be postponed
| According to the Maryland law no
I license can be issued in Baltimore
j without the signature of the clerk oi
, the court, and no license can be is.
; sued until his successor i" appointed)
I A score or more of couples who in.
* tended to be married quietly drov<
I seven miles out to the county seat
I secured a license there, and had tin
I' knot tied.
A German wedding party went oul
last night in a big 'bus, and after
tbe marriage returned to town foi
the celebration.
SAILED OX THE iII. DA.
; Duke nnd Durliessof Marl lioi-onprli
Tnkc Their Dojinrtiirc.
NEW YORK, Nov. 16.— The Duke
and Duchess of Marlborough sailed
for England today by the North
Gorman Lloyd's steamship Fulda. A
large number of friends of the young
couple were nt ihe steamer's dock
in Hobokon to bid them farewell.
Mis.. Alva Vanderbilt. accompanied
by Miss Katharine Duer and two ol
the duchess' bridesmaids, was in
the roped enclosure which separated
her from the crowds. . William K.
Vandr-rbiltr father of the duchess* .
*.va3 also at the dock. . -^
