Newspaper Page Text
Its e* f'/ h. -ti The Denison Review '••'-A* E. F. TUCKER, Publisher. DENISON. IOWA. LAND OF l-DON'T-CARE-WHERE When I'm sick of my desk and papers, When I'm fagged with the wear and tear, tW'hen I long for a breath of freedom In the Land of I-Don't-Care-Where, Then I look thro' my office window, Past the pit of the city street it t'le "ne the dim horizon Where the sky and the ocean meet. ,!A.nd I watch the great clouds sailing Thro' the pale-blue smoky sky, iltghty ships with the fairest cargoes, Sailing peaceful and white and high— .And I mount to my private airship, -.r That will carry me up and- away Ihro' the wastes of heavenly waters To the shores of a land-locked bay. And there's nobody there to meet me But the people I know In books, And there's no one at all to gossip Of money or creed or looks But the fruit hangs low In the orchard And the grass waves mile on mile JWhere I sit with some old-world hero •v On the step of a country stile. And the West is ablaze with sunset, And the air holds a touch of June, .And the bees and the breeze of the river Hum a wonderful, restful tune— .•But, hark, What's that sound of stamp ing? There are footsteps on the stair! jAnd I'm back—called back In a hurry From the Land of I-Don't-Care-Where! -—John H. Holllday, In Fuck. THE MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE By EMERSON HOUGH Author of'' The Story of the Cowljoy, "The Girl at the Halfway Houm,"Etc. (Copyright, 1903, by Emerson Hough.) u« '".Sf 4 ««SV 1#,.- CHAPTER XXXIV. THE REGENT'S PROMISE. Tell me, then, Monsieur L'as, of this j|Pmew America. I would fain have some misinformation at first hand. There was ffumor, I know not how exact, that you fe' -once traveled injthose regions." Thus spake his grace Philippe, duke Sgg.of Orleans, regent of France, now, in v$S8'«ffect, ruler of France. It was the au dience which had been arranged for John Law, that opportunity for which She had waited all his life. Before him .now, as he stood in the great council chamber, facing this man whose ambi tions ended where his own began—at Jpi-tho convivial board and at the gam ||i|4ng table—he saw the path which led •lUl'to the success that he had craved so long. He, Law of Lauriston, some ^l^-time adventurer and gambler, was now fcssS -playing his last and greatest game. "Your Grace," said he, "there be !«any who might better than I tell yoti |-of that America." "There are many who should be ible, and many who do," replied tiie •'egent. "By the body of the Lord! we Jsget nothing but information regarding Hp "these provinces of New France, and "||each advice is worse than the one pre '"-ceding it. The gist of it all is that :, -my lord governor and my very good 1 Hntendant can never agree, save upon -one point or so. They want more money, and they want more soldiers— |-ah, yes, to be sure, they also want more women, though we sent them out F-a ship load of choice beauties not ignore than a six-month ago. But tell sie. Monsieur L'as, is it indeed true |"that you have traveled in America?" "For a short time." "I have heard nothing regarding you |tfrom the intendant at Quebec." "Your grace was not at that time |-caring for intendants. 'Twas many :years ago, and I was not well known |«t Quebec by my own name." "Eh bien? Some adventure, then perhaps? A woman at the bottom of it, I warrant." "Your grace is right." 'Twas like you, for a fellow of .good zest. May God bless all fair dames. And as to what you found in jlhus following—or was it in fleeing1 Sfiyour- divinity?" "I found many thing3. For one, Uthat this America is the greatest coun |try of the world. Neither England nor France is to be compared with it. I The rasent fell back in his chair and -'y daughed heartily. "Monsieur, you are indeed, as I ^j^nfS^rfcave ever found you, of most excellent -wit You please me enormously." ,|K irious." "Oh, come, spoil not so good a jest ^s -by qualifying, I beseech you! En «H gland or France, indeed—ah, Monsieur j. *~".L'as, Monsieur L'as!" 'I "Your own city of New Orleans, sire, "V "will lie at the gate of a realm greater 'than all France. Your grace will hand S~l to the young king, when he shall come -of age, a realm excellently worth the -ownership of any king." "You say rich. In what way?" asked Mhe regent "We have not had so much «of returns after all. Look at Crozat? Look at—" "Oh lie, Crozat! Your grace., he teolved not the first problem of real commerce. He never dreamed the real richness of America. Philippe sat thoughtful, his finger », Sips together. "Why have we not •heard of these things?" said he. "Because of men like Crozat, of men •like your governors and intendants at •Quebec. Because, your grace, as you know very well, of the same reason •which sent me onco from Paris, and ileept me so long fi.-m mying before you "hese very plana or which I now "would speak." "And that cause Y' 'Mp.kitenon." "Oh, ah! Indeed—that la to say—" l.o'-.fs would hear naught of me, of •sovirse. yaintcnon took care that ho ^ihcsuld find I waa but heretic" -f "As fo»- MifitUt," bftrtrf Philippe the' regent, "heretic or not heretic makes but small figure. For us, 'tis most a question of how to keep the king in the saddle and France underneath." "Precisely, your grace." "Frankly, Monsieur L'as, I take it fittest now not so much to ponder over new worlds as over how to keep in touch with this old world yet awhile. France has danced, though for years she danced to the tune of Liu is clad in black. Now France must pay for the music. My faith, I like not the look of things. The joyful France to day is a hideous thing. These people laugh! I had sooner see a lion grin. Now to govern those given us by provi dence to govern," and the regent smiled grimly at the ancient fiction, "it is most meet that the governed should produce somewhat of funds in order that they may be governed." "Yes, and the error has been in go ing too far," said Law. "These peo ple have been taxed beyond ftie taxa tion point Now they laugh." "Yes, and by God, Monsieur L'as, when France laughs, beware!" "Your grace admits that France has no further resources." "Assuredly." "Then tax New France!" cried Law, his hand coming down hard upon the table, liis eyes shining. "Mortgage where the security doubles every year, where the soil itself is security for wealth greater than all Europe ever owned." "Oh, very well, monsieur though later I must ask you to explain." "You admit that no more money can be forced from the people of France." "Ask the farmers of the taxes. Ask Chamillard of the treasury. My faith, look out of the window! Listen! Do I not tell you that France is laughing?" "Very well. Let us also laugh. Let us all laugh together. There is money in France, more money in Europe. I assure you these people can be brought to give cheerfully all they have." "It sounds well, Monsieur L'as, but let me ask you how?" "France is bankrupt—this is brutal, but none the less true. France must repudiate her obligations unless some thing be swiftly done. It is not noble to repudiate, your grace. Yet, if we cancel and not repudiate, if we can obtain the gold of France, of Europe—" "Body of God! but you speak large, my friend." "Not so large. All subjects shrink as we come close to them by study. 'Tis easy to see that France has not money enough for her own business. "YOUR GRACE, I AM ENTIRELY SERIOUS." If we had more money in France, we should have more production, and if we had more production, we might have taxes. Thereby we might have somewhat in our treasury wherewith to keep the king in the saddle, and not under foot." "Then, if I follow you," said Philippe, leaning slightly forward and again placing his finger tips judicially to gether, "you would coin greater amounts of money. Then, I would ask you, where would you get your gold for the coinage?" "It is not gold I would coin," said" Law, "but credit." "The kingdom hath been run on credit for these many years." "No, 'tis not that kind of credit that I mean. I mean the credit which comes of confidence. It is fate, necessity, which demands a new system. The world has grown too much for every man to put his sixpence into the other man's hand, and carry away in a basket what he buys. We are no longer savages, to barter beads for hides. Yet we were as savages, did we not come to realize that this insuf ficient coin must be replaced, in the evolution of affairs, just as barter has long ago been replaced." "And by what?" "As I said, by credit." "Do not annoy me by things too deep, but rather suggest some definite plan, if that may be." "First of all, then, as I said to you years ago, we need a bank, a bank in which all the people of France shall have absolute confidence." "You would, then, wish a charter of some sort?" "Only provided your grace shall please. I have of my own funds a half million livres or more. This I would put into a bank of general na ture, if your grace shall please. That should be some small guarantee of my good faith in these plans." "Monsieur L'as would seem to have followed play to his good fortune." "Never to so good fortune as when first I met your grace," i-iplied Law. "I have given to games chance tha. severest thought and stuay. Just as much more have I given thought and study to this enterprise which I pro pose now to toy before you." "And you asic the patent of the crown for your bank?" "It were better if the Institution re ceived that open indorsement" A slow frown settled upon the tea* at the other. "That is, at tha b«zl»' MRU ning. Impossible, Monsieur L'as,** said the regent. "It is you who must prove these things which you propose." "Let it be so, then," said Law, with conviction. "I make no doubt I shall obtain subscriptions for the shares. Remember my words. Within a few months you shall see trebled the ener gies of France. Money is the only thing which wo have not in France. Why, your grace, suppose the collect ors of taxes in the south of France succeed in raising the king's levies. That specie must come by wheeled ve hicle all the way to Paris. Consider what loss of time is there, and con sider what hindrance to the trade of the provinces from which so much specie is taken bodily, and to which it can return later only a little at a time. Is it any wonder that usury is eating, up France? There is not money enough—it is the one priceless thing by which I mean only that there is not belief, not confidence, not credit enough in France. Now," given a bank which holds the confidence of the peo ple, and I promise the king his taxes, even as I promise to abolish usury. You shall see money at work, money begetting money, and that begetting trade, and that producing comfort, and comfort making easier the collection of the king's taxes." "By heaven! you begin to make it somewhat more plain tp me." "One thing I beg you to observe most carefully, your grace," said Law, "nor must it ever be forgotten in our under standing. The shares of this bank must have a fixed value in regard to the coin of the realm. There must be no altering of the value of our coin. Grant that the coin does not fluctuate, and I promise you that my bank ac tions, notes of the chief bank of Paris, shall soon be found better than gold or silver in the eyes of France. Moreover, given a greater safety to foreign gold, and I promise you that too shall pour into Paris in such fash ion as has never yet been seen. More over, the people will follow their coin. Paris will be the greatest capital in Europe. This I promise you I can do." ."In effect," said the regent, smiling, "you promise me that you can build a new Paris, a new world! Yet much of this I can in part believe and under stand. Let that be as it may. The immediate truth is that something must be done, and done at once." "Obviously." "Our public debt is twenty-six hun dred millions of livres. Its annual in terest is eighty millions of livres. We cannot pay this interest alone, not to speak of the principal. Obviously, as you say, the matter admits of no de lay. Your bank—why, by heaven, let us have your bank! What can we do withput your bank?" CHAPTER XXXV. A DAY OF MIRACEES. The regent of France kept his promise to La.w, and the latter in turn fulfilled his prophecy to the regent The Banque Generale de La's et Com pagnie was seized upon by the public, debtor and creditor alike, as the one new thing, and hence as the only sal vation. As ever, it .pleased Paris to be mystified. In some way the rumor spread about that Monsieur L'as was philosophique that the Banque Gen erale was founded upon "philosophy." It was catch-word sufficient for the time. "Vive Jean L'as, le phllosophe—Mon sieur L'as, he who has saved France! So rang the cry of the shallow-witted people of an age splendid even in Jts contradictions. And meantime the new bank, crudely experimental as it was, flourished ds though its master spirit had indeed in his possession the philosopher's stone, turning all things to gold. One day, shortly after the beginning of that brilliant spectacular series of events destined so soon to make Paris the Mecca of the world, there sat at table, in a little, obscure cabaret of the gay city, a group of persons who seemed to have chosen that spot for purposes of privacy. Yet privacy was difficult where all the curious passers by stared in amaze at the great coach near the door, half filling the narrow and unclean street—a vehicle bearing the arms of no less a person than that august and unscrupulous representa tive of the French nobility, the Prince de Conti. No less a person than the prince himself, thin-faced, aquiline and haughty, sat at this table, looking about him like any common criminal to note whether his speech might be overheard. Next to him sat a hook nosed Jew from Austria, Fraslin by name, one of many of his kind gathered so quickly within the last few weeks in Paris, even as the scent of carrion fetchcs ravens to the feast Another of the party was a man of middle age, of handsome, calm, patrician features and an unruffled mien—that De la Chaise, nephew of tho confessor of Louis the Grand, who was later to rep resent the young king in the provinces of Louisiana. Near by the latter, and indeed the central figure of this gathering, was one less distinguished than either of the above, evidently neither of church ly ancestry nor civic distinction— Henri Varenne, sometime clerk for the noted Paris Freres, farmers of the national revenues. Varenne, now serv ing but as clerk in the new bank of L'as et Compagnie, could have been called a man of not great standing yet it was he whose presence had called hither these others to this unusual meeting. In point of fact, Varenne was a spy chosen by the jealous Aria Freres, to learn what bs might of the internal mechanism of this new and startling institution which had sprung into such sudden prominence. "As to the bank of these brothers L'as," said the Prince de Conti, rap ping out emphasis with his sword hilt on the table, "it surely has much to commend it Here is one of its notes, and witness what it says. Tha baak promises to pay to tho bearer at sight the sum of fifty livres la coin ot tha Vftlftht uid sUind&Jtd of this ixr-' Thai is to say, of this date which it bean Following these, are the words 'valu* received.' Now. my notary tells that these words make this absolutely safe, so that I know what it means ii coin to me at this day, or a year from now. Is it not so. Monsieur Fraslin 1 The Jew reached out his hand, took the note, and peered over it in clore scrutiny. 'Tis no wonder, Monsieur le Prince," said he, presently, "that orders have been ghen by the government to re ceive this note without discount for the payment of the general taxes. Upon my reputation, I must say to you that these notes will pass current bet ter than your -uncertain coin. The specie of the king has been changed twice in value by the king's orders. Yet this bases Itself upon a specie value which is not subject to any change. Therein lies its own value." "It is indeed true," broke in Var enne. "Not a day goes by at this new bank but persons come to us and de mand our notes rather than coin oi the realm of France." "Yes, yes," broke in the prince, "we are agreed as to all this, but there is much talk about further plans of this Monsieur L'as. He has the ear of his grace the regent, surely. Now, sir, tell us what you know of these future affairs." "The rumor is, as I understand it," answered Varenne, "that he is to take over control of the Company of tho West—to succeed, in short, to the shofc of Anthony (^ozat There come cu rious stories of this province of Louisi ana." "Of course," resumed the prince, with easy wisdom, "we all of us know of the voyage of L'Huillier, who, with his four ships, went up this great rivei Messasebe, and who, as is well known, found that river of Blue Earth, de scribed by early writers as abounding in gold and gems." "Aye, and there comes the strangfl part of it, and this is what I would lay before your lordships, as bearing up on the value of the shares of this new bank, since it is taking over the char ter of the Company of the West. It in news not yet known upon the street The story goes that the half has not been told of the wealth of these prov inces. "Now, as you say, L'Huillier had with him four ships, and it is well known that his gentlemen had with them certain ladies of distinction, among these a mysterious dame re ported to have earlier traveled in por tions of New France. The name oi this mysterious female is not known save that she is reported to have been a good friend of a sous-lieutenant o! the regiment Carignan, sometime dweller at Quebec and Montreal, and who later became a lieutenant under L'Huillier. It is said that this same mysterious fair, having returned from America and having cast aside hei lieutenant, has come under protection of no less a person than his grace Philippe of Orleans, the regent Now, as you know, the bank is the best friend of the regent, and this mys terious dame, as we are advised by servants of his grace's household, hath told his grace such stories of the wealth of the Messasebe that he has secretly and quickly made over the control ol the trade of those provinces to this new bank. There is story also that his grace himself will not lack profit in this movement!" ITo Be Continued.] BEWILDERING SIMILE. The Bad Mistake of an American In an Effort to Point a Moral in Corea. A capital story has been told by an American missionary who lately ar rived in London from Corea, says an exchange of that city. The difficulty of learning the language of that coun try is increased enormously owing to the large number of words which, with a slight inflection of the voice, ars used over and over again with an en tirely different meaning. The mis sionary in question was preaching to some natives, and assuring them that unless they repented they would go to a place of punishment. Amazement rather than terror was written on tha faces of his oriental listenem. Why on earth, if they rejected his advice and refused to repent, should they be dis patched—to the local post office! On another occasion a lecture was de livered, in the course of which a beau tiful moral was being drawn from tha gay career of the tiny butterfly which was suddenly cut short in the clutches of the spider. The simile, however, fell somewhat short of its intended meaning, and it was not until tho laughter had subsided that the lecturet became aware that the victim which had been floundering araid the dainty silken threads of the web was a donkey, which in the Corean language, it ap pears, is synonymous with butterfly. For Valor. Mr. Andrew D. White tells in his reminiscences of his diplomatic ca reer a story of a British officer who has since won distinction. This was Gen. Methuen, who at the time of Mr. White's ministry to Germany was a young colonel connected with the Brit ish embassy. One day, while walking in a remote part of the Thlergarten, Methuen saw a working man throw himself into the river and Instantly jumped into the icy stream after him, grappled him, pulled him out, laid him on the bank and rapidly walked away. When news of it got out ha was taxed with the doed by members of the dip lomatic corps but ho awkwardly and blushing!/ pooh-poohed tho wholo mat ter. One evening not Ions afterward t\e old emperor sent for the ccloneL When ha presented himself his majesty too!: frcm hi3 own coat a medal ci honor for lifc-savlnij and attached to tho breast of iletauon, who rece' 11 in a very ajaajr •itajk- C&cUiix ffrnbabb 3-ffert Ipott Man of a ftorelg $rg?tabl? Sift By DR. SAMUEL W. ABBOTT, Secretary Massachusetts State Board of Health. HAT would be the effect if we should stop eating meat? It is not probable that any marked change in man's condition would occur at once, but in the course of time changes might occur which would adapt the human organism to such a form of diet. As now constituted, man appears to thrive upon a mixed diet, since that appears to be the diet which nature has designed for his sustenance. Upon this diet he appears to attain the highest intellectual and physi cal vigor, and it is this diet which he consumes by general inclination when circumstances allow his inclination to guide him. A mixed diet is also in conformity with the construction of his teeth and the general arrangement of his digestive organs. To the workingman, and especially to those who are accustomed to small wages, the food question is one of the highest importance, and this applies particularly to meat as an article of food, since it is the most expensive kind of food. A dollar expended in wheat flour will purchase several times as much of natural nutrient material as the same sum expended in more costly kinds of meat. The laboring man at hard work requires more meat and other articles of food than the man who sits still all day at his desk and performs no work requiring muscular exercise. Aged people require much less meat and food in general than those who are in the prime of life. When we turn from this class to the man of wealth who goes to the hotel table and partakes of several courses of meat, fish and game daily, and, leading a more or less sedentary life, wonders why he be comes a victim of dyspepsia or insomnia, or any other of the various train of consequent ills, we must conclude that among this class not only too much meat is used, but too much of everything else, and a rigidly abstinent diet, with an absolute change in mode of life, is the reasonable mode of cure. A proof of an increase of interest in this subject among American people in recent years is found in the increase in vegetarian restaurants in the large cities. There are said to be at least a dozen in New* York, Boston and one or more large cities, sufficiently well patonized to be quite well established. Strict vegetarianism, however, is rarely prac ticed. Sir Henry Thompson, in his paper which he had contributed to the Nineteenth Century, tells of a vigorous young lady, with ruddy cheeks, who professed to be a vegetarian, but on being asked what she had eaten for breakfast, said she had eaten an egg with plenty of milk and butter, and that she was very fond of cheese, but ate no meat. To call this a vegetarian diet is simply a contradiction of terms. I will close with the statement of three parallel facts, allowing the reader to draw his own inferences: 1. The consumption of meat in the United States has relatively increased within the past 40 or 50 years. (I take this for granted, in the absence of definite figures.) 2. While the wages of the workingmen, and the consequent abil ity to purchase meat more freely, have considerably increased, the pros perous condition of the wealthy has increased in a still greater degree. 3. The relative mortality from diseases of the brain has doubled in the past 40 years, and that of diseases of the heart have trebled in the same time. Athenian prototypes By MRS. IZORA CHANDLER. Author of "Elvira Hopkins, of Tompkins Corners," "Three of Us," Etc. civilization as was the ancient Athenian to the civilization of his time. The men of Athens seized every opportunity of congregating, in order that they might learn and discuss the news or any question con cerning politics, art and letters. Dr. Wheeler pictures that immortal trio—Socrates, Aristophanes and Agathon—sitting together and argu ing whether the same person could write both tragedy and comedy. I Each day of that golden time the men after an early bath hastened to the barber—in lieu of a morning paper. If the news proved not too exciting they returned home for a few morsels of bread dipped in thin wine. At nine again they left the little, low one and two storied houses that edged the narrow streets, and sought the Agora, which was bur rounded invitingly by airy, shaded colonnades. Here they talked until 12. But not all succeeded in getting so fnr. Overtaken by an interesting subject some gathered within the coo! tern pies or "wherever there was a shadow." During chill weather the an 1 bathhouses rarely were empty of reasoners, eager or calm. Dinner came with evening, when were present only men guests rt he host, and was followed by the more important symposium, which"'^'7*' lasted until an uncertain hour. Added to this 40 whole days in the year were given to the Ecclesia, their political convention. "'With these remembrances the American woman who maintains th^t the men of her country have it in their power to become the peers of those grand fel- 'vl lows will hardly quibble over an occasional evening at the club. ©rarltmf ©rgattt|ationa By PROF. AARON GOVE, Of Denver, Colo. permitted, and it is his duty, to participate in the councils of the legisla-'^ tive department, his evident duty lies in the execution of the plans which have been made by others as well as himself. That part of the execu-', tive department of the school system which relates to teaching of pupils is vested primarily in the superintendent the responsibility is his, theo retically, the knowledge of the best method lies with him. The independence of a teacher is confined to that part 01 his official life that depends upon ethical relations. No independence can be with regard of the performance ».f an assigned duty. A democracy of teachers for the purpose of controlling authonta tively the many hundred lines of activity connected with the adminis tration of schools is as fatal to the accomplishment as that the patrol men of the police department of a great city shall organize and give directions according to their own will to the department in which they are placing their services. An organization of teachers for legislative purposes or for directive purposes is comparable to an organization on the line of the younget part of a large family for the control of the parents' efforts, jar^j JT •m V* 5..JI -M •f,«i f' 'I 'J 5t HP )fr affecc In his illuminative lec tures upon ancient Greek life Dr. Benjamin I. Wheeler, president of the University of Cali- -r fornia, advances the the ory that our modern Yankee is to the present "3*1 1 I i' 4 In school administra a in it a it tion positive must lie functions of the legis lative and of the execu tive. department. and evident. between the •i®. V-'hile the superin- vAv tendent of schools 19