Milk River Valley news. [volume], October 19, 1904, Image 6

About Milk River Valley news. [volume] (Harlem, Mont.) 1904-1908

Image provided by: Montana Historical Society; Helena, MT

                
HOW DEMOCRATS DO THINGS
Dreamed They Fathered National Irrigation, but
Facts Show It Was Only a Dream.
TRUE HISTORY OF REPUBLICAN MEASURE
Federal Aid to Irrigation Originated with a
Republican Administration Fifteen
Years Ago—Roosevelt’s Per
_ sonal Triumph.
The Democratic party would have the
uninitiated believe that it i . responsible
for all good tilings. Where it could not
be successfully contradicted within a
given time, it would not hesitate to
claim the credit for the Decalogue, the
Christian era, the discovery of America,
tlie Declaration of Independence, the ad
ministrations of \Yu*hiugt 'ii and Lin
coln, the construction of the Panama
canal, or. in fact, any old thing.
The Democratic press nop* has the
fcardihood t<» openly assert that the party
of negation and calamity is responsible
for the National Irrigation Aet. In
keeping with the traditional revelation**
of its notorious '‘hindsight’* it has dis
covered that, this same National Irriga
tion Act of President Roosevelt’s is cal
culated to add a new industrial empire
to the Unite ! States. It would fain- give
this the “me-too” accent, but it is too
late. What are the recorded facts?
Uo't lllstnrr Speak.
The first move on the part of the fed
oral government to reclaim the arid West
began as far back as 1880, under Presi
dent Harrison’s Republican administra
tion. when a bill was passed by Congress
authorising an investigation of this sub
ject with a view of ascertaining to wh.it
extent the arid regions of the United
States can be benefited by irrigation.
This bill appropriated SIOO,OOO for topo
gra| !iical surveys for the fiscal year end
ing June 30. 1880. The money was to
be used under the direction of Major
To well, the then head of the geological
eurvey.
Tlie work" was placed under the super 1
■vision of the Secretary of the Interior,
and Major Powell was directed to make
bis report as early ns possible. Upon
his report mid the recommend'tiens of
the Secretary of the Interior, the SIOO.-
■OOO was ted by an additional
appropriation of $250.000 By tlw passage
of an act for tin* further investigation
of the arid regions. A committee of
Senators was appointed to visit the arid
regions of the different Western States
and territories, during the summer of
IS9O. It completed its work of investi
gation and made its report after having
travelo»l 12.000 miles and having been on
the road fifty days.
Kfimli icniH Lend the Way,
The Republican national convention
bell in JMi.l.iifelphia in June. 1900, re
ferred to irrigation in the national plat
form as follows: “In further pursuance
of the constant policy of the Republican
party to provide free homes on the pub
lic d un tin we recommend adequate Na
tional leg -lntion to reclaim the arid
lands of the United States, preserving
tlie co tnd of the distribution of water
for irrigation to the re*|active States
and territories.” The Democrats. «>f
course, imitating'and following the lend
of the Republican party in all matters
of progress, adopted the following plank
in their platform at Kansas City in July.
11)00: “We favor nil intelligent system
of improving the arid land of the West,
storing the waters for the purpose of
irrigation and the holding of such lauds
for actual settlers.”
Roosevelt Prime Mover.
In l»i** piessnge to the Fifty-seventh
•Conjure** President Roosevelt dearly ami
rigorously urged the enactment of legis
lation in aid «»f development l*y irrigation
of t the great arid portion* of our «*uun
*ry. Encouraged by the President's
•earnest and vigorous recommendation,
the members of Iwth branches «f <\m
ffron* from the arid and semi-arid States
met in the early days of the session, ap
pointed a committee of one from each of
the said States and territories, with Sen
•tor Warren of Wyoming, a Republican.
«e chairman, for tilie puri>ose of drafting
an irrigation measure.
This committee tailored earnestly and
faithfully, and finally presented to the
fwlJ representation from thetWest n bill
sriii. b was accepted by them, introduced
in the Senate by Senator Ilansbrough.
a LVptiblican. and in the House by Rep
resentative \«‘\vlands. which hill, with
subsequent amendment*. was the foHadn
't h»u for the present national irrigation
•CL
On .May 14. 1902, in presenting the Mil
to the House ('ongresmnan re
ferral t*» 2'resjd'snt It-Hiscvelt's nfessnge
on irrigation and quoted the same in its
entirety, thus admitting that the Tresi
dent * inftiicn e fir the nvensure was the
etrongest at that time.
I'r~aid«ut Alters Till.
This measure was known as the Hnns
brinigh-Ncv. iands I.ill. and became tip*
basis ii|*on whit'll tiie committee work
was done, but a- drafted it never became
A law. it no discussed by a sklf-eon*
Atituted committee of representatives
from all the Slates concerned, which met
nearly every day during December and
on J »ee. 28 agreed upon the form of the
revised Mil. which, after wrill further
change* by the Senate committee, passed
tile Senate without revisiou ou March 2.
1002.
But in the form in which It was rec
ommended by the general committee of
which Mr. Newlaud* wan secretary, and
In which It passed the Senate, the bill
was unacceptable to President Rooaevelt
•a affording •peculator* and large land
owner* opportunity • . monopoly* tlie
benefits of the act. M KoosevHt there-
For* sent for Sena in IDubrough. 4 n,|
Representatives Met.'jtf. M-wnlv aiid
Herder. all HephbUcsn- wit . w ,i! l l, nV c
eluirireof flic bill In the If.iiw* m-l warn
ed them that 41 files* rli.mged m • ->»rtwin
re*p*f-t« he should be •mpclled « rep,
H
i heck mutes the Shocks.
The specific change* that he required
• •ye. first, flMtt the iry 4f the lu
terlor should be"'empoweredto withdraw
front,.entry all lands proposed to be irri
gated, instead of orrty those required for
reservoirs and ditches as provided in the
bill; that no water should be sold or de
livered except to bona fide settlers, ac
tually living on the »and to which the
water was applied—which was not in
the Newlands bill—and that the words:
“but State and territory laws shall gov
ern and control the appropriation, use
and distribution of the waters rendered
available under this act,” should be strick
en out as virtually subjecting the control
of Federal work to State Legislatures,
some of which he doubtless lielievod, but
•lid not sty so, to be unfit to exercise
such n trust, and as certainly exposing
the settlers to the dangers of endless
and ruinous litigation. At the Presi
dent’s express requirement the bill was
amended in these respects and became
the law as it stands to-day.
Unproccrientc t Force.
There had been attempts for many
years to get the government to go into
the irrigation business, but all failed un
til President Roosevelt took hold of the
project. Iu his first annual message to
Congress in 1901 he called attention to
the necessity of providing water for the
arid lands ami sail: “The object of the
government is to dispose of the land to
settlers who will build homes upon it.
To accomplish this object water must be
brought within their reach.”
._/Tlie national government’s policy, he
pointed ont, should lie to aid irrigation
in id** several States and territories in
lU 1) a maimer as will enable the people
in the local communities to help them
selves and as will stimulate needed re
forms In the State laws and regulations
governing irrigation. He likewise re
minded the Fast, which was against this
policy at the time, that Lhe reclamation
and settlement of tiie arid en
rich every portion Of our country just as
! the settlement of the Ohio and Missis
sippi valleys brought prosperity to the
Atlantic States.
Final Personal Triumph.
With his accustomed vigor and intelU-
I genre President Roosevelt exerted intln
• cnee in this direction on Congress, won
I the timid and the vacillating over to his
| side, and the Nations 1 Irrigation Law was
enacted on June 17. 11)02. That law, be
it remembered, grew out of his message
of 1001. was enacted by a Republican
Congress, ably coached by Mr. Roose
velt. The measure became a law with
his signature. The Republican National
Irrigation Act of 11)02. signed by Presi
dent Roosevelt, was u fitting and natural
supplement to the Republican Free
Homes Law of 1802. signed by President
Lincoln.
To President Roosevelt, therefore, and
to hi in alone, la due the fact tbit there
was any National irrigation at all in that
Congress, and that the law, as enacted,
absolutely protects the |x>or man and
renders any large ho...ngs of national
irrigated laud iiniHjssible forever.
Ami this is how the L>emocrats are
•‘responsible” for national irrigation.
__________ *•
It'-mlutloiM by I'uslness Man.
At the ninth annual convention of the
National Association of Agricultural Im
plement and V chicle M anufaettirers. held
ct Minneapolis Oct. 15 to 17. 1002, the
committee on resolutions reported as fol
lows:
Resolved. That we congratulate the rnun
fry on the pa**are of the National Irriga
tion Act and express our profound appre
etatlon of the nld and eo operation of Pres
ident Roosevelt, and all friend* of that
measure In the Senate and House of Rep
resent at Ives. In seeding the passage of that
act We believe title action hv Congress
marked the roHccptlos of one of the great
est project k ever undertaken by any gov
ernment. and that It iaangcrnteN a new era
In the progress of this nation and the de
velopment of Its Internal trade and eotn
met-e and the enlargement of the home
market for all our ninmifnettiroM; that the
Irrigable mid lauds, which are estimated
to « omprlse an area of over loo.imhxjo
sen-s. ran and shot,ld be reelalund Just ns
rapidly a* s.itbrs will take them and re
lay the ...st to the government of Irrlgu
turn works built for their reclamation.
"by Justice Has Not Ileen Done
Before.
Ihe \\ e**t ho* boon for years insist
ing that some legislation should be in
augurated by Congress looking to’the re
clamation of the arid public lands owned
!‘. v th * government and constituting in
<onio si q,.* it;, per cent of the area. One
tea son t lu* agitation has progressed slow
ly has Itceii that the portion of tlie coun
try most interested in the question’ is
"••antiiy settled and lias not tlie influ
ence in national councils which numbers
give.
Another reason was that it was diffi
cult for those living in humid States to
form any proper conception of the irri
gation question, and the senators and
Representatives from States having no
djre<*t interest in the question have been
slow to acquire tlie information neces
sary to bring them to a full realization 1
of Its importance. It is not specially
strange that so many American citizens
should he unfamiliar with this subject.
It Is out that does not present itself in
a practical way j n the portion of our
country which eontaius nine-tenths of
our entire population. While the arid
region is of vast extent, it is hut thinly
sett Jed. It is estimated that under the
National Irrigation Act the West will
l»« capthis of sustaining 80.<*)0 O<X) pan-
Pie.
Well Merited Tribute
In a landing editorial in Max war*
Talisman. iie..rge 11. Maxwell, one of
i lie best informed men on Irrigation in
the I iiited Slatf* say*:
And ll»o*e of till*'general i»|i who will eu i
|ny the** beitedth ami ndv* m * gen and rhs
-nntrrW .tint vmttiHms mttllmis wtro will-In
tlie year* Mini in the imierntlons r«* eiuno In
hel'lt those lands ami live In the homes
which will be there created, will owe the
gn at boon which will |„* theirs to tin* clear
sighted murage and indexll.lilt v of purpose
of President Roosevelt. It Is’not possible
to explain In such n way ns to t»»* under-
1 b/ anyone not familiar with every
detail of the situation how much the frb nds
of the inittflmit Irrigation movement «nve to
President Roosevelt for Ills aid In bringing
about the amendments to the Irrigation Idll
In Mils session of Congress. Without his
Interest and friendly Interno-dt l<*n It is
doubtful whether the amendments of the
Idll entihl have been neeompllshed. Had It
imt been for the President, the frlmids of
the national Irrigation movement who stand
for home-making ns against 1 ml *-■ per illa
tion, would have hud to fight ami defeat
the compromise t oiuiulttee bill and then be
gin all over again, gather their forces and
make a new start In the next Congress. As
It Is now. the work of the last three years
has been preserved by the net lon of the
President and the Idll is now In such shape
that every friend of the home maker can
heartily support It.
An Ideal American.
What this country wants now is men
—-not a few of them, but a multitude —A
vast majority of her citizens who .shall
be just such men as Theodore Roosevelt,
of strong and rugged physique, shirking
no labor, however third, able to stand
the strain of sturdy integrity, guided by
high civic ideals, standing inflexible and
inexorably for the truth and the right.
His own words from his address, “The
Strenuous Life,” may be taken as the
very basis and foundation for a new
source of philosophy and national policy
which will guard against all social dan
gers if the people of this country will
but heed them:
In the hist analysis, a healthy state ran
exist only when the men and women who
make It up h*ad «-lenn,—vigorous. h**nlthy
lives; when the children are so trained that
they h)iu 11 endeavor not to sairk dlll»cultli*s
but to overcome them, not to seek ease but
to know how to wrest itiumph from toll
and risk. The man must be ylad to do a
man’s work, to dare and endure mid to
labor, to keep himself and to keep those
dependent upon hlui. The woman must be
the housewife, the helpmeet of the home
maker, the wise and zealous mother of
many healthy children.
Here is a remedy that goes to the
foundation. The words are those of a
leader and carry with them a warning
and an admonition. Theodore Roosevelt
has coined a word that we should take
as n national watchword and set it up
M a beacon light on every hilltop
throughout the nation: ‘‘Homemaker.”
METHUSELAHANDTHESPHINX
Come all ye Bryan Democrats,
Your peerless leader slinks;
Come All ye floated plutocrats,
Forget your former kinks;
The banners float for and you must vote
for
Methuselah and the sphinx.
— —■*— . ■■■■—.—_ i
Come all ye scattered Democrats
That sulk like frightened minks/
So lean that we can see your slats.
As hungry as the lynx;
The banners float for and you must
vote for
Methuselah and the sphinx.
Come all ye hopeless Democrats,
While Parker thinks he thinks.
Climb off the ship like frightened rats,
Before the old thing sinks;
The banners float for and you must
vote for
Methuselah and the sphinx.
—Chicago Chronicle.
TY»rfli of Cheer for the Dem-'crsCT.
It has been given out to the forlorn
and drooping Democracy that “Willie
Ilearst is loosening up”; that he has
been induced to put in a few thousands
to open headquarters for the National
Democratic Clubs. The hungry know
well that this means that TTearst aspires
to be n candidate again, but they are not
worrying about 1908 now.
Four years ago lien rat was presi
dent and footer of bills for the National
Democratic Clubs. The members met.
if memory serves aright, at Indianapolis,
expecting to greet their president. But
he sent one of his hired men to receive
the greetings of his admirers. This
dampened tlie ardor of the crowd, de
spite the fact that their fare back home
hhh paid. The November election set
tled the whole concern, but it seems that
tl>e N. I>. C. is to be resurrected, what
little there is left of its ashes.
Democratic Financial Mnnaseaettb
On the Ist of July, 1892, the last year
of the llarrisou administration, the total
houded debt of the United States was, iu
round numbers, $355.000,000. On the Ist
of July, 1897, the last year of the *ec
ond Cleveland administration, the total
bonded debt was $843,000,000, an in
crease of S2T>B.OOO.OUO during four years
of perfect peace.
July 1, 189*2, the annual interest
charge on the public debt was $*.,893,•
000. July 1. 1807, it was $34,387,000.
an Increase of $11,494,000 during four
years of Democratic administration.
A party that cannot ml minister the
government duriug a short period of
four years without largely increasing flic
public debt and the annual interest ac
count is not fit to be entrusted with The
control of affairs.
Two 1 ud sea with Political Pnnt«.
Democracy can always lie depended
on to blunder. The nomination of Judge
1 arker was a blunder, because he re
ceived his early political training from
D. 11. Hill, one of the most notorious
wire-pullers and worker* in devious wav*
New York has produced. The nomina
tion of 1). <’ady Herrick for Governor
of New York, also was a blunder, be
cause he was “lmss” of the Democratic
‘‘machine” at Albany before his election
to the bench. The Albany “machine"
has a reputation as unenviable as Tani
maily’s.
Tim last few years of Republican ad
ministration have added untold millions
to the agricultural wealth of the country
by opening new markets for farm pro
ducts at constantly improving prices. The
beauty of the Republican policy of pro
tection is that it develops manufactur
ing and agricultural interests on paral
lel lines.
“We do not Havre to sneu at oir con*
▼lctlons* and than correct the g ne , a jf
it aaoma unpopular. Tho prlnrl-itr*
which we proto,* are tlioae in w|ii
we believe with heart and until an( |
streouth. Men may differ from ti at
but tbev cnanot acenae us of ehiftlaee*
or ia« I near 11 y. *•-Roosevelt's letter of a ,..
OFpttkW
According to antrofioiners it is ilfom
23 trillion* of miles, a* the crow flics,
from ihc cnrtli t«, Alpha Onlauri. the
nearest tix«*«| star. It Is about the -;i, n r
di-lj:i'c fr.»ui K*Of>n* to the Wlijie
Ilou*e by the Democratic route.
WAGES AND COST OF LIVING
Grotesque Attempt by Democrats to Twist Facts
for Campaign Consumption.
GROSSLY INACCURATE STATEMENTS
Country Is Not in Throes of a Disastrous
Business Depression, and Workingmen
Continue to Prosper — What
the Figures Show.
Nothing could better illustrate the in
finite capacity of the 'eiTiocratic parly
for doing the wrong thing at the right
•moment than its attempt to outface
acknowledged industrial conditions with
the bald statement of its campaign text
book—That business depression of this
year is greater than was that of 181)3 and
181)4.“
As there are as many million Ameri
can voters as there are millions engaged
in industrial pursuits whose experience
spans the decade, and who know this
to be most fortunately false, there is no
need to waste time in refuting it. The
Democratic depression that, prevailed
from 1>93 to-181)7 paralyzed industry in
every section of the United States, and
its pinch was felt in every home. Tlie
“buslhC'S depression of ...,s year” is so
largely a figment of Democratic imagi
nation that it requires a magnifying
glass to be seen, and wlnrt there is of
it is rapidly fading from sight as the
prospects of a great Republican victory
become more certain.
But the Democratic campaign book is
not satisfied with this grotesque generali
zation. so it attempts to controvert the
Republican claim of prosperous times in
farm, «tllice and workshop with the as
sertion that no one is better off by rea
son of increased incomes, because the
cost of living has increased dispropor
tionately.
Llow utterly and irrationally absurd is
this contention is proved by the fact that
if prices were advancing more rapidly
than t'ae earnings of the great mass of
the people, the great mass of tno people
would soon l>c irretrievably insolvent or
'.heir purchases wou.~ l>e so curtailed
that the volume of business would be
enormously reduced.
There is no possibility of making a
scientific comparison of .je relative in
crease-in wages and the cost of living,
because they are controlled by different
factors. The rate of wages is controlled
by industrial conditions; the cost of liv
ing is controlled by the individual. No
man can fix his income at will; any man
can limit his expenditures. Let condi
tions provide sufficient wages to the
workingman, and it rests with him to
say by what margin he will live within
his income. The larger tlr.it income the
larger his possible surplus. If better
wages breeds extravagance, the result,
in the language of Micawber, is misery;
if they are expended with economy, the
result is an accumulation of wealth and
happiness.
C'nx’inclnir Te-tlmonr.
Good times under Republican admin
istration has provided the better wages,
and the economy of the American peo
ple has piled up the moans of content
ment and happiness, as is evidenced by
life following statement of the number
• f depositors and deposits in the savings
banks of the United States for the eleven
years from 1803 to 19***, inclusive:
Yf*nr. No. Depositors. Deposits.
IWTJ 4.« ••»."/*') sl.7**’.A'*n.' *7
,c 04 4.777.0.87 1.747.001.“50
IHP3 .4.877.719 l.s'u :.'»7
IK!HI r».VH-.4n4 1.!H)7.T7n.277
IS”7 R.201.1.T2 I.!i:to,:i7fl.«a*»
lrt-8 7 in 2.n’r..(i!i.:".i.8
1-11) fi.oK7.siß 2.230,31*45 97 |
t*.'(K) <5.107.083 2.4 49.717,88."
!!V1 6,378.723 2.707.004 7**o
1903 6,041*1.072 2.770,177,290
19>£j 7,307.228 2,937.204. Kl 7
The Democratic depression of ISSI 3
and 1804, to which the campaign hook
inadvertently directs attention, was
marked by a f illing off in deposits of
over $87,000,000 in one year. Between
1803 and 1003 the average due each
depositor increased from $309 to $417.
More significant than tlie increase in
deposits is the fact that in 1903 there
were 2,474,029 absolutely new savings
bank depositors in the United States,
marking an increase of\ nearly B 0 per
cent, during a period when the total
population only Increased 24 per cent.
Col. Wrlirh ‘* 4 Summary.
Turning now to the direct comparison
or the advance in wages and cost of liv
ing during the period under review, the
Democrats affect the greatest contempt
for the government statistics, which,
under the able, conscientious and un
biased direction of Carroll I). Wright,
present the following instructive sum
mary:
Course of employment, wages, hours of labor, weekly earnings mwl rr-tll mi, ..
l'Jo3°° (1, * ind pur<ha * lus I ,ower of weekly eurutugs rcluilvoly to* prices of filed P JsiS*
(Relative numbers computed on basis or average for 1800-1809-1000.)
, .. ** Retail Pur. power
Hmdoyes— I'ours nrr Weekly prl.es w. ellv.—es
Uetatlve week. i#utlre enrnliigg of fend Ml. to price
Yotr. Sum ,!,7„ numl , , ,'L r . n r. la. i, e . r «| a i|oM«d.
IMf't 01 t 0" S 1)7 7 . ’ 7 J. K „
iwt.l v ; 3 lou ik . .17
ISOB -S 3 V\S 0i1..-, ,04*2
isi'7 i"aa ro.n no.a 00.3 j<c.o
ISOB ..1033 00.7 liai.O 05.7 ,111.3
lono ii"o 1 a 101.2 00.3 007
101x1 ; " 05. 7 on 1 ,no.t jii.io
1001 J'- 1 1 !)s, 1 10.-,.0 10-,.2 ,1 wt. 7
11V.2 ...7; « 07,3 100:1 lion OSS
1003 >-(,! OU.S 112.3 110.3 10! R
Thoxe filfiires |irf.ent the rexnlts of «o
oxt.nsiTß liiTP»tl*»tloo iuto llo> wage*
itntl hour* of hihor In th* In,Unit niann
fnrturinf *»<• moohnnlcal lndo*tri»» of
the Unite,l Hlnte* during tlie period nain
ed. It h»» designed to cover thoroughly
the principal deatluctive occupations, and
Mr. Wrilfht, In •ulnnitting It (a.. Kulle
Mil of the Bureau of loilxir, No. July.
liKM.t -ays: “It la l.elieved that the
di,to presented are more ciulprebenalve
nod representative so far ns the nip tin
fai tnriog and niei liaoi, si indnstiin ari<
romeriied than «».' that has. heeu here
tofore pnhllshed-
The tigores as to income and expen
diture ate sumniarixed from data gath
er,, I rrnm 2.WIT fainilie-. in 83 States,
oh,average In, ,one from all sources
was $827 * . T '_**' r , " >'"se average expen
diture was I'hH Jll '* who-e average
expenditure for food was $329 per fam
ily. or 42.54 per cent, of the average
expenditure for all purposes. This data
was corroborated by other information
in less detail form, from 25,440 families,
and so is entitled to be accepted as rep
resentative.
The most cursory examination of the
above table reveals the fact that the
purchasing power of wages, measured by
retail prices of so »d„ was 5 per cent,
greater in 1003 than in 1893, and this
in spite of the fact that the hours per
week li:ibeen ‘reduced 3.7 per cent.
But ludre conducive to the wide dis
si mination of the prosperity than these
proofs of the increased purchasing pow
er of wages, is the fact revealed in the
column giving the relative number of
persons employed in the establishments
investigated. Between 1804 and 1003 the
increase in the number of employes re
teiving these wages with increased pur
chasing power was 34.3 per cent., while
in the meantime the population of the
United States only increased 21 per cent.
I emocrocv’H Last Resort.
Disheartened and disgusted wi*th the
wide distribution of prosperity in the
homes, workshops and bank accounts of
American wage earners, demonstrated by
these figures, the Democrats appeal to
"railroad labor as affording the most ac
curate barometer of wages.” Here, they
say, “a large proportion of the employes
are union men. whose wages are com
paratively steady.”
Then the compilers of tlie Democratic
campaign book begin to juggle with the
very averages and percentages they af
fect to despise. They institute compari
sons between 1892, when railway wages
were at high tide, and 1991, when they
had scarcely recovered from Democratic
recession of 1893-189(5. They suppress
the fact that the st itistic.il average of
railway wages wa* less affected by the
Democratic hard times than the average
of other industries, for the obvious rea
son that as forces were reduced in num
fiers the proportion of high priced em
ployes retained because of their experi
enee was greater.
They also conclude their comparisons
with the year ending Jnpe 80th, 1902.
well knowing thlt the statistics of the
Interstate Commerce Commission for
that year only reflect a month or two
of tin* advance in railway wages of that
calendar year, which did not reach flood
tide until July, 1903. Not until the
statistics of the Interstate Commerce
Commission for the year 1903-1904 are
published next summer will it be pos
sible to make an authoritative compari
son of the w’.ages of railway employes
and the cost of living in the year 1903.
But the report of the Commission for
the fiscal year 1903 is available, and it
furnishes the following data, which
throws light on the rich slice of pros
perity which has fallen to the share of
railway employes:
NUMBER AND COMPENSATION OF
™ I AnI/i£, , : , ' , -° YES ,N T,IK VEARS
X"!. r * Number. Coinnensntlon.
!23 1.212.7*57 $777,321. t* 7
Increase tSD.ndl g309.7in.V34
increase per cent.. 50. t ctlo
Increase of compensation relatively
over ncinbcr 7.1
That this relative Increase of compen
sation, compared with that in the num
ber of railway employes, docs uot tel!
the whole truth is proved by the follow
ing table:
avt:uac;e daily compensation of
certain DISTINCTIVE Cf 'S.SES OF
Railway employes for tme
YEARS ENI»ING JCNE 3«» Tl I, ICP7.1 C P7.
AND ItKKI (rblr alxtccnth Animal report
of tlie statlAticn of railways lu the middle
Mate* for 1903, p. 43.)
Dally Com pen- Increase
average sitllnn per
IV»7. P.H3. cent
Em; Ineincn I.ITm $4.01 pfl
Firemen 2.a"» 2.28 11 *»
Comlr.ctom 3.Q7 3..?8 m l
Other trainmen j.p*> 2J7 ]|;j
Section foremen .... 1.7) 1.7 s
Other truckmen 1.10 1.32 13’$
lint the Kl'tnrci Prove,
It will be observed that these six dis
tinctive classes of railway employes, em
bracing almost half of nil the rtiiwav
employes in the l* iterl States (301.473
in 1903 against 3C3 303 in ISO7I were
receiving an average daily compensation
during the year 1902-3 more than 10 per
cent, greater than during the year 1890-
1897. Moreover, It is a notorious fact
that these averages do not begin to rep
resent the increase in the earnings of
mil way employes duriug the summer of
1903, when the rate of pay of certain
classes was raised from 10 to 13 per cent.
In that year, too, there were 227.912
more persons employed iu the six classes
named than in 1897. and according to the
Interstate Commerce Commission they
were receiving tlie Increased dally aver
age pay where they received nothing in
the year last named
Filially, returns gathered from the an
null I report* for the ending Jilin*
•hull. 1904. of eight representative rail
ways in different parts of the country,
having a total mileage of 19,387 miles.'
indicate thut the compensation nf their
employe** has uu>B® than, 10 pef
cent, over the year previous, while the
r.a:nber *»f their employes lias remained
practically stationary, as is shown iu th«
following table*.
Number mnl eempeusatton of employe* ol
eight repn .entatlve railways:
Year ending Compensa-
June No. <nip layer lion.
1904 101,344 $00,490,007
190,*! 103,891 00,285,097
I m i ens** 453 8,215,570
Inercas'* |»**r cent... 0.4 lO.Jt
Here lit l ist we s. e truly reflected th#
effect of the horizontal raise in the wages
of railway employes made ns the result
of the widespread labor agitation in the
summer of 1903. The advance w*as
variously estimated at the time us from
12 to 15 per emit., and any statistics
that fail t«* show it must be distorted
by the introduction of some factor, such
as a disproportion of low price labo»
tending to reduce the average.
In connection with the above proof
of the 10 per cent, advance iu railway
wages in one year, it should be reenem
bored that the decline in price* begun
in 1903 continues.
If tho Democrats are willing to ac
cept the pay of railway labor ae the most
accurate barometer of wages, the Re
publican party can call to the witness
stand 1,312.337 railway employes to
testify to the fact that, measured by
what it will buy, their income of 1904
is higher than it was iu 1897, and near
ly half a million of them can truthfully
affirm that they received no compensa
tion whatever in 1897 where, according
to the above system of average compen
sation, they now* divide some $275,000,-
000 among them,, or about S3OB apiece.
KILKENNY HARMONY.
That la the Kind that Prevail* Among
New York Democrat*.
Not since the traditional cats of Kil
kenny were hung across a line by tbeir
tails has there been such an amusing
harmony of subdued discord as is heard
iu New York, now that Judge D. Cady
/BQprrw-k has been nominated by the Dem
ocrats for governor. Judge Parker want
ed Edward M. Shepard, or District At
torney Jerome nominated for governor in
order to galvanize his campaign into lhe
semblance of life.
David B. Hill wanted John B. Stanch
field, because Stanchfield best represent
ed the organization outside of New York
City, to which Mr. Hill owes his ascend
ancy in the State Democracy. Mr. Hill
had no use for llerrick, who, as Demo
era tic boss of Albany County, has been
a thorn in his side for years. But, it
iff said, he. accepted Herrick and put
him in nomination on the principle of
the salesman who sold a coat marked
815 for $lO, on doubtful credit, because
he would lose less if the bill was never
paid* Ilill will lose loss in Herrick’s
defeat than if he had succeeded in nomi
nating his friend Stanchfield.
Senator Patrick IT. McCarren, the
Brooklyn boss, to whom Judge Parker
owes his nomination, wautexl Comptrol
ler Grout nominated, and for a time he
had Mr. Hill’s ostensible support for
Grout. Judge Parker and Hill went back
on McCarren; the former to placate
Charles F. Murphy and Tammany, and
the latter because he couldn’t help him
self.
Tammany accepted Herrick because it
was willing to accept anybody who stoo<\
for the discomfiture of Boss McCarren.
As a tomahawk in the hands of Charles
F. Murphy with which to dispatch Me*
Cnrren, D. Cady Herrick would serve
Tammany much better than either Shep
ard or Jerome.
Besides, did not Judge Herrick's career
on the bench present sterling claims on
tlie admiration and necessities of Tam
many? Ilis abuse of his judicial posi
tion to the political exigencies in Albany
is along the line of what Tammany con
siders the higher walks of politics. More
over, has he not practically pardoned an
official blackmailer and protector of dis
orderly houses by imposing a paltry
of SI,OOO on the notorious police Captain
Diamond?—a stroke of judicial leniency
toward corruption in New York City pe
culiarly attractive to Tammany. If ..e
would so act as judge, what prodigiee
of clemency to “good men” might he not
perform ns governor? So Tammany drop
ped Mayor McClellan and swallowed
llerrick and his record with genuine rel
ish and noisy gusto.
Not ro. however, the Democratic press
of New York City. The WORLD takes
its medicine with evident nausea; the
TIMES turns Herrick’s picture to the
wall and fixes its gaze on Judge Parker,
w ith the reflection that one honorable
nomination in four years is as far aa the
New York Democracy can be expected to
pander to the somewhat blunted moral
sentiment of its constituency. The
EVENING POST openly repudiate#
Herrick, saying that a proper regard for
its own reputation forbids giving trim
the negative support of silence.
From this brief resume it may be
gathered that the elements for a harmo
nious Democratic campaign in New York
are all that could be desired—from e
Republican point of view.
rnrkor’s Admission.
Judge Parker’s letter of acceptance
stands pat—on Republican achievements,
but coyly admits that its writer would
’•e a siler man at (lie National tbrottls
than President Roosevelt so long as a
Republican Senate sits on the safety
\alve. IP Rio protective tariff is “rob
bery” he Is willing to turn sneak thief;
if we burglarized I’a.inma he is willing
to keep the stolen goods; if order No. 78
lets down the bars for a pension acauda)
he will revoke the order, but let ths
bars remain down just tlie same. It Is
a very pretty confession that the Repub
licans have admitijstcrcd the goveruuneot
' vi * e, y. diligently and effectively that
they deserve»a vacation, while he trie*
his prentice hand nt running it without
reversing a single lever.
Frnlee f-om n Democratic Newapaptr,
The New York Times, one of t/he
Democratic newspaper* which has been
denouncing President Roosevelt's Philip
pine policy, recently printed an editorial
lender on the settlement of ths Friars’
land question. The artlcls conclodssi
“I? Is creditable lmth to the [intelligence
and th« humanity of the goYerninent.“
If tlie Times was less partisan It could
trnthnillv *«\ that every act of the
Rooaevi It admbii>ir:ition in dealing with
the INitiippfn* question wns creditable
to the Fnited State*.
”1 he expo net it ures of the Natloai lisvs
been nsnnueil in a spirit of economy
ns tnr reoiovrd from wsete ns from
nlifgnrdlincix: itnd in the futnre every
effort will b 0 continued to secure nn
economy as strict ns is esnaisteut with
efllclencr.'* Koon veil « lfttrr es uccepUnri.