Fergus County Democrat. [volume], February 27, 1912, Page 2, Image 2

About Fergus County Democrat. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-1919

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Fergus County ' Democrat
THE OFFICIAL PAPER OF FERGUS COUNTY
TOM STOVT, Publisher and Proprietor
Entered at the postoffice
at Lewistown, Montana,
ae second-class matter.
Subscription.
year
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LEWISTOWN, MONTANA,
Subscribers, Notice.
In ordering your papei
changed to a new ad
dress, mention old ad
dress also, to Insure
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notify this office.
..FEBRUARY 27, 1912.
UNITED FOR PROGRESS.
No better evidence is required by
the stranger within our gates than
the get-together banquet last Friday
evening that the people of Lewistown
are solidly united for the civic and
commercial upbuilding of this town.
Gathered around the banquet table
was a solid phalanx, almost two hun
dred strong, of men who, by their
presence, assured the visitors that we
have here no cliques nor factions, no
kickers nor reactionaries, insofar as
the welfare and progress of Lewis
town are concerned. Not a discordant
note was struck. Enthusiasm was
plentiful, but it was not the enthu
siasm which takes its incentive from
mere noise and numbers. It was en
thusiasm which is the legitimate out
come of unity of thought and action;
of a determination to do things which
shall make this a bigger, better and
busier town.
The address by Secretary Will
Campbell, of the Northwest Develop
ment League, was well suited to the
occasion. He preached earnestly and
convincingly the doctrine of sane de
velopment, of honest and effective ad
vertising. His story of the aims and
objects of the great organization
which lie represents found a ready
response in the hearts of all present.
The people of Lewistown are in a
position to grasp the significance of
any movement the purpose of which
is upbuilding of the great Northwest.
No single section of that immense ter
ritory has done more, is doing more,
to bring about, a speedy realization of
the dreams of Northwest Development
League founders than the Judith
Basin. No undeveloped section of the
Northwest has done more toward
making good the claims advanced in
the generous advertising now in pro
gress than the Judith Basin. No city
has contributed more in the diversified
realms of such advertising than Lew
istown lias contributed through its
active commercial club, its wide
awake real estate firms, its optimistic
and acutely progressive business men.
During the past three years the job
rooms of the Democrat have printed
fifteen thousand dollars' worth of ad
vertising matter. Other job offices
have been proportionately busy. And
of the tons of literature thus printed
there has not been one ounce which
lias overdrawn or misrepresented ac
tual conditions.
The people of Lewistown are big
enough and broad enough to realize
that any movement which has for its
object the settlement and develop
ment of the Northwest directly bene
fits this individual community. That
is the reason that our commissioners
have always made liberal appropria
tions for exhibits at our state fair and
on the exhibit cars which the rail
roads are using. It is the reason that
our commercial club co-operated with
some of our real estate men in making
an exhibition at the St. Paul land
Show at an expense of thousands of
dollars.
The interest shown Friday evening
Is the logical expression of the spirit
of Lewistown. There is not the
Slightest danger of this spirit flagging.
Rather, it is going to grow in in
tensity as our people approach a full
er realization of the work which they
have to do, the work of peopling an
empire and building a modern city
vibrant with the pulsating life of pro
gress and achievement. Opportunity
is knocking at our door and she finds
hundreds of out-stretched hands to
beckon her welcome, hears hundreds
of voices raised to acclaim her pres
ence. There are no sleepers here to
awaken, for all are ere now aroused.
The wonderful Judith Basin is not
wanting for Destiny to creep forth un
attended to her threshold, but is go
ing forth in the vigor of her youth and
her promise to hasten Destiny hither.
CHAMP HAS A CHANCE.
The action of the Missouri demo
cratic state convention in instructing
the delegates from that state to the
national convention for Champ Clark
has materially boosted the stock ot
the speaker of the lower house of
congress, who must now be looked up
on as one of the three leading candi
dates for the democratic nomination
for the presidency. With thirty-six
delegates safely stowed away in his
pocket as a nest egg, the big Mis
sourian has the advantage over both
Wilson and Harmon of a substantial
start
Oklahoma, with twenty delegates,
will probably be for Clark, and the
Kansas delegation will probably be
largely for the speaker. Clark has be
hind him the active support of Wil
liam Randolph Hearst and that may
mean another bunch of delegates
from California and probably New
York.
It is not likely, however, that Clark
will go into the convention with a ma
jority of the delegatee. At that, he
will probably have more than Harmon
from the present outlook. Woodrow
Wilson, of New Jersey, will unques
tionably be the strongest man before
tbe national convention on the first
ballot But for the rule which re
quires the successful candidate to se
cure two-thirds of the delegates, Wil
son would likely be nominated on the
first ballot. He Is certain to have a
big lead and it remains to be seen
whether or not he can gather in
enough scattering votes on succeed
ing votes to give him the coveted
honor.
Clark's hope must lie in a deadlock
in the convention with neither the
Harmon nor the Wilson delegates will
ing to give in to the other. In that
event a compromise candidate will be
sprung and Champ certainly has a
lead over all of the dark horses in the
field.
While this paper believes that Wil
son is the strongest man whom the
democrats can nominate, it is be
lieved that the democrats of the na
tion will not be seriously disappointed
if Champ Clark is nominated. The
speaker has made a splendid record
during the seventeen years that he
has served in congress. When he en
tered congress in 1893 he became the
colleague of such giants as Reed, Hen
derson, Gosvenor, Mills, Dingley and
McKinley. During his first session
he won his spurs as one of the great
est debaters that ever sat in that
body. His breadth of learning, lov
able personality and sturdy honesty
soon caused him to be recognized as
a power on the floor of the house and
in the councils of his party. He at
tained the leadership of his party in
congress through sheer ability and his
elevation to the speaker's chair was
the natural result of his commanding
talents. lie has added to his fame
since becoming speaker by his uni
form fairness and the manner in
which lie has held together the hither
to warring elements of the demo
cratic majority.
Clark's long service in congress has
given him an intimate knowledge of
the machinery of this government.
Such knowledge would be an invalu
able asset were he to be elevated to
the presidency. As a candidate,
Champ Clark would typify the best
there is iu American citizenship. In
tensely patriotic, ever devoted to tbe
doctrines of free government, a
sturdy advocate of the great reforms
which are now before the nation, he
would be no weakling in any sense of
the word and would add to the lustre
which the great and good men who
have held the highest political office
in the world have shed around that
exalted position.
NEW COUNTY TALK.
Our esteemed contemporary, the
Stanford World, is agitating itself
greatly these days anent county divi
sion. The World is vociferously advo
cating the creation of a new county
which shall take in a large portion of
the western part of Fergus county.
The advocacy of such a step is, of
course, predicated upon the assump
tion that Stanford shall become the
seat of government of the new county.
As a matter of fact, the World, in
any event, is wholly within its
rights in the rather large task that it
has set aside for itself. It would be
an excellent thing for Stanford to be
the county seat of such a county as
the World has traced out on the map
and it is the plain duty of a live news
paper such as the World to take the
lead, which means added business,
population and prestige for the town
in which it is published. Moreover,
Stanford is a town upon whose mu
nicipal brow county seat honors
would fit becomingly, It is a virile,
progressive little city and is certainly
destined to become one of the impor
tant centers of trade and population
in central Montana. Some day there
is going to be a court house over
there iu Stanford, people are going to
pay taxes over there some day and
some day there will be a board of
i county commissioners over there for
people in other sections of the county
I to swear at because said board of
commissioners cannot make ten dol
lars do tiie work which would require
ten times ten to do.
This paper does not doubt the en
tire feasibility of dividing the Judith
Basin into two counties, but it does
doubt the entire wisdom of doing it
at the present time. It is believed
by this paper that the present ar
rangement is best pending the changes
which shall be w'rought by the com
pletion of the Great Northern railroad
to MoccaBin and of the Milwaukee
from Lewistown to Great Falls. Un
less all present indications go awry,
that will not be more than two years
at the longest. The construction of
these lines of railroad will obviate one
objection which the residents of the
west side now have against Lewis
town as a county seat, the time that
it requires for them to reach it As
a matter of fact, the people now liv
ing in the Denton country will then
find it much easier to come to this
city to transact their county seat
business than to go across country
from ten to thirty miles to Stanford.
At any rate, this is the view which
several very excellent citizens of that
section take of the subject.
This paper feels that the people of
Stanford who are so desirous of hav
ing a new county created will find the
people of Lewistown and vicinity ab
solutely lair when it comes time to
discuss, seriously, the proposition to
uiviae the county. The World has
a<uu a lew narsh things about the peo
ple over tms way, but we do not be
lieve that such structures are wholly
deserved. Lewistown certainly has no
quarrel with Stantord and they are
not going to permit the rather ill
natured criticisms of the World inter
rupt the frienu.y relations which have
always existed between the two
towns.
The law covering the creation ot
new counties is specific. It has just
oeen successfully invoked in the nor
thern part of the state, where Chou
teau county has been carved into
tnree counties. If the people of Stan
ford desire to try the proposition now,
there is nothing in the way, but Judg
ing from the sentiment as expressed
by the papers at Hobson, Moccasin
and Benchiand and by residents of the
country nortn and west of Stanford, it
is the impression of this paper that
the proposition will not prevail at this
time. And, in this connection, it is
well to remember that such a failure
precludes any further effort, under
the provisions of the new county law,
for two years after the special elec
tion is held.
The news reports of the past week
state that there has been a serious
earth slide in the Culebra cut on the
Panama canal. We deny the further
statement that the presence on the
canal recently of two Lewistown
heavyweights, Dave Hilger and D. J.
Burke, had anything to do with start
ing said slide.
Teddy says his "hat is in the ring,"
whatever that cryptic sentence may
mean. There are not lacking evi
dences that said chapeau is being
rudely trampled upon by one large,
placid person, who is daring the own
r to come on and get it if he dares.
Miss Columbia begs to inform Uncle
Sam that she has no "at home" print
ed on her calling cards this year.
Moreover, the latch-string is appended
inward.
By the way, just what has become
of that little war which Italy and
Turkey are supposed to be waging
over there in Tripoli?
The Remarkable Weather of 1911.
The year 1911 will long be remem
bered for tbe violence of its weather.
The spring opened mild and delight
ful, but in June a torrid wave of un
paralleled severity swept over the
country. The cities baked and gasped
lor breath, while the burning sun and
hot winds withered the corn and cost
tiie farmers a million dollars a day.
A little later England was scorched
and France and Germany sweltered.
The mercury went above 100 deg. in
western Canada, and whalers brought
back reports from the Arctic regions
of open water where always before
there had been solid ice. The reports
from Mexico and Central America
would well describe the lower regions
but it is said that the summer in Ice
land was enjoyable.
In August the elements took a dif
ferent turn and the flood-gates of the
heavens were opened. Kentucky and
the South Atlantic states were deluged
and the Philippines were more thor
oughly drowned than they had been
before since the time of Noah. Al
berta was visited by a killing frost
which ruined hundreds of pioneer
farmers. A cyclone devastated Costa
Rica and a violent gale swept the
South Atlantic coast, destroying a
great number of vessels. During the
later fall, the North Atlantic was tor
mented by a series of more violent
storms than were known to the oldest
sea captains. In November the south
ern states were visited by a killing
frost, while December was remarkable
for its high temperatures.
Aside from the extreme heat, the
frosts of the far north and the sunny
south, and the violent storms at sea,
the year 1911 was still exceptional.
The mean temperature of every
month except November was above
the average of that of the 40 years
covered by the records of the United
States Weather Bureau. The average
daily excess was from four to six de
grees.
With only one month out of twelve
below normal, one may well ask if the
climate is not changing and getting
warmer. This important question is
discussed by Francis Molena, in the
March Popular Mechanics Magazine.
He says:
"Since burning coal produces carbon
dioxide it may be inquired whether
the enormous use of that fuel in mod
ern times may not be an important
factor in filling the atmosphere with
this substance, and consequently in
indirectly raising the temperature of
the earth. In the United States about
500,000,000 tons of coal were mined in
1911. Suppose four times this amount
were mined and burned in the whole
world. When this amount of coal is
burned, 7,000,000,000 tons of carbon
dioxide are put into the atmosphere.
The question is, simply, whether this
is an appreciable fraction of that
which the atmosphere already holds,
and whether there are any important
ways in which it is being removed
from the atmosphere."
The Mules Was Uninjured.
Senator John Sharp Williams,
whose supply of darkey stories seems
inexhaustible, tells this new one:
"I was proceeding leisurely along a
Georgia road on foot one day, when I
met a conveyance drawn by a mule
and containing a number of negro
field hands. The driver, a darkey of
about 20, was endeavoring to induce
the mule to increase its speed, when
suddenly the animal let fly with his
heels and dealt him such a kick on
the head that he was stretched on the
ground in a twinkling. He lay rubbing
his wooly pate where the mule had
kicked him.
"'Is he hurt?' I asked the older
negro, who had jumped from the con
veyance and was standing over the
prostrate driver.
"'No» boss,' eras the. older man's
reply; 'dat mule walk kind o' tendah
for a day or two, but he ain't hurt.' "—
Lipplncott's Magazine.
MAYOR MARSHALL MAKES DIS
COVERY WHILE TRYING TO
SAVE SOME FREIGHT.
Several months ago Mayor John S.
Marshall took up, in his official ca
pacity, the subject of freight rates
on paving material in the event that
Lewistown should happen to be in the
market for some such material in the
immediate future. Mr. Marshall was
under the impression that he might
possibly secure some sort of a special
rate on this material and had inti
mated to him that such would be the
case if there were no legal objections
to overcome.
The subject was taken up with the
railroad companies, who referred the
matter to the state railway commis
sion, to whom the mayor next wrote.
It was tnen that Mayor Marshall dis
covered that the laws of this state do
not permit a railroad to grant special
rates for municipalities, although
special rates are granted in the case
of the state. Secretary McLaren, of
the state railroad commission, on be
half of the commission, stated the
case fully in the following letter re
ceived by the mayor last week;
Section 5335 of the Revised Codes
of Montana, provides;
"A common carrier must always
give preference in time, and may give
preference in price, to the United
States and to this state."
Section 22, Chapter 37, Laws of
1907, the Railroad Commission Law
of Montana, provides as follows:
"If any railroad subject hereto di
rectly or indirectly, or by any special
rate, rebate, drawback, or other de
vice, shall charge, demand or receive
from any person, firm or corporation,
a greater or less compensation for
any service rendered or to be ren
dered in tiie transportation of prop
erty subject to the provisions of this
act., than that fixed by the State
Board of Railroad Commissioners for
such service, such railroad shall be
deemed guilty of extortion, and shall
forfeit and pay to the State of Mon
tana, not less than five hundred nor
more than two thousand dollars for
each offense. Provided that nothing
herein shall be construed as to pre
vent any railroad or railroad corpora
tion from giving excursion rates to or
from any point within or without the
state."
Under date May 24th, 1911, the Chi
cago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Rail
way company made application to the
Commission for authority to absorb a
portion of the Northern Pacific Rail
way company's switching charges on
coal from Roundup, Montana, when
consigned to the Miles City lighting
plant. It will be observed that Sec
tion 5335 of the Revised Codes quoted
above, specifies: "The United States
and to this state," but does not ac
cord to municipalities this same con
cession. The Commission was, there
fore, obliged to deny the application
of the carrier on the grounds that
the laws of this state do not permit
of special freight rates being made
to other than the state itself, or to
the United States. The federal law,
however, permits on interstate traffic,
of reduced rates to municipalities the
same as the Montana law allows to
the state or the United States.
The C., M. & P. S. Ry. Co. was of
the opinion that the Montana statute
would permit of their request being
granted, and accordingly the Commis
sion took the matter up with the de
partment of the attorney general, and
we quote from his ruling as follows:
"Section 3805, Revised Codes, de
fines a corporation to be a creature of
the law having certain powers and
duties of a natural person. By the
provisions of Section 3806, corpora
tions are declared to be either public
or private. Public corporations are
formed or organized for the govern
ment of a portion of the state. All
other corporations are private.
"Section 22 above quoted, uses the
word 'corporation' and does not dis
tinguish between public and private
corporations, and therefore the word
'corporation' used in the section, in
cludes both public and private.
Section 5335, Revised Codes, is the
only section of our codes which in
anywise limits Section 22 of Chapter
37, Session Laws 1907, insofar as this
question is concerned, and that sec
tion applies only to the United States
and to this state. The word 'state'
cannot in my opinion be given a con
struction broad enough to include a
municipal corporation, and you are
therefore advised that a railroad can
not absorb the switching charges on
freight assigned to a municipal cor
poration or extend to such corpora
tion any greater rights or privileges
in the transportation of freight than
it extends to the general public."
This Commission believes that it
was the intent of the legislature when
Section 5335 was enacted to give to
municipalities the same privileges as
to tbe State of Montana, but the law
Itself does not so state, and the Com
mission must be governed by the spe
cific reading of the statute. It is not
our policy to place obstructions in
the nature of technicalities in the way
of common carriers, and we regret
that our action in refusing to author
ize the absorption of switching
charges requested by the C., M. & P.
S. was mandatory under the law, and
in explaining our position to the City
of Miles, and to the C., M. & P. S. Ry.
Co., it was our suggestion that the
I Montana law be amended at the next
Session of the legislature bo as to per
mit of lower rates being accorded mu
EMPIRE BUNK & TRUST COMPANY
LEWISTOWN , MONTANA
Commodious and well arranged offices, am
ple resources, and a spirit of accommodation
combine to enable this bank to offer excep
tional facilities for handling Fergus County
business which we solicit and which will be
given the personal attention of its officers.
PVREDRVGS
- " FOR =
Physicians Prescriptions
There is a particular care which has to be exercised in
filling physician's prescriptions. Pure drugs and chem
icals must be used. We give yon this extreme care
and the most scientific compounding. If you are re
covering from cold, la grippe or pneumonia, we can
supply you with the exact drugs which your physician
prescribes.
WILSONS EIDER DRUG CO.
Eastman Kodak Agents, LeWistoWn, Montana
FARMERS! ^
KEEP IN TOUCH ^8^
With all Important Matters by Telephone
and Save Much Trouble, Time and
Money* Call our contract de
partm e nt for rates and
other information
The Mountain States
Telephone and Telegraph Co.
SCRIP FOR SALE!
Santa Fe Pacific Forest Reserve, $15.00 per acre.
Northern Pacific R. R. Collections for Surveyed Land $12.25 per
aere.
Northern Paoific R. R. Selected for unturveyed land $15.25 per aere
FULLY GUARANTEED
THE COOK'REYNOLDS COMPANY
LEWISTOWN, MONTANA
nicipal governments, the same as may
now be accorded the State of Mon
tana. Until this is done, we must be
governed by the opinion of the attor
ney general as herein expressed.
AVOID HAR8H DRUG8.
Many Cathartics Tend to Cause Injury
to the Bowels.
If you are subject to constipation,
you should avoid strong drugs and
cathartics. They only give temporary
relief and their reaction is harmful
and sometimes more annoying than
constipation. They in no way effect
a cure and their tendency is to
weaken the already weak organs with
which they come in contact.
We honestly believe that we have
the best constipation treatment ever
devised. Our faith In It Is so strong
that we sell It on the positive guar
antee that it' shall not cost tbe user
a cent if it does not give entire satis
faction and completely remedy con
stipation. This preparation is called
Rexall Orderlies. These are prompt,
soothing, and most effective in action.
They are made of a recent chemical
discovery. Their principal ingredient
is odorless, tasteless, and colorless.
Combined with other well-known in
gredients, long established for their
usefulness in tbe treatment of consti
pation, It forms a tablet which is
eaten just like candy. They may be
taken at any time, either day or night,
without fear ot their causing any In
convenience whatever. They do not
gripe, purge, nor cause nausea. They
act without causing any pain or ex
cessive looseness of the bowels. They
are Ideal for children, weak, delicate
persons, and aged people, as well as
for the most hearty person.
They come In three size packages,
12 tablets, 10 cents; 36 tablets, 25
cents; $0 tablets, 50 cents. Remem
'her, yoo can obtain them only at our
store—The Rexall Store. Wllson
Selden Drug Co., Main St