The Frostburg spirit., December 25, 1913, Image 3

About The Frostburg spirit. (Frostburg, Md.) 1913-1915

Image provided by: University of Maryland, College Park, MD

                
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BOOK I.
t The Silent House.
CHAPTER I.
Number 1313.
As Rudolph Van Vechten entered
the outer doorway of his club, the
handsome mission clock in the hall
was chiming the three-quarter hour
after eight.
The young man’s thin, sensitive lips
assumed a rueful curve and his brow
gathered in a scowl.
“Fifteen minutes yet until nine/’ he
muttered in a tone of complaint, star
ing hard at the dial. “Whatever I
shall do until night the gods alone
know. Plague on such rotten luck!"
And having thus given audible ex
pression of his feelings, he dismissed
the temporary irritation with a re
signed shrug and sauntered listlessly
into the luxurious but deserted loung
ing-room overlooking the street, where
he dropped heavily into a huge, bil
lowy leather chair which stood facing
one of the windows. He immediately
discovered that the chair was insuffer
ably hot, and bounding to his feet,
glared round for an attendant.
None was to be seen; so he shoved
the stuffy chair away—it was too
heavy to kick —and jerked a cooler
and more inviting willow one into its
place, wherein he once more seated
himself.
"Somebody ought to kick me for
having come here,” he feelingly re
marked. Then he turned again to his
Incipient contemplation of the hot
empty street.
Van Vechten might have told you,
If he had paused to analyze his feel
ings respecting the Powhatan, that hie
attachment to his club was based upon
some sort of sentiment. His slender,
modishly attired figure, and his finely
chiseled, high-bred features (which
were much paler than they should
have been) were by no means strange,
to their present rich and elegant sur
roundings. In point of fact, no mem
ber of the Powhatan more assiduously
availed himself of the club’s exclusive
privileges than did he. Among the
small coterie of his intimates and
friends, and the much longer list of
acquaintances who would have liked
to share the closer relationship, no
body ever thought of calling for him at
his own handsomely appointed bache
lor apartments in the Kenmore until
the Powhatan Club had first been
tried, and even then not before noon.
Because, prior to that hour, all at
tempts to communicate with him so
invariably had been frustrated by his
diplomatic valet, Barnicle, that every
body had long since learned that he
was not in the habit of rising before
twelve o’clock.
Familiar, therefore, as his appear
ance was to the astonished and dis
comfited club attendant (in season),
it was associated —reluctantly as the
fact must be admitted—only with late
hours, the poker or bridge table, and
a multitude of cocktails whose num
ber was known by no man save that
miracle of divination, the Powhatan’s
steward. He carefully indexed and
preserved all the checks which Van
Vechten so promptly forgot
Without spending too much time,
or trying to interpret too many words,
let us endeavor to make the situation
clear; for it was all very strange, the
manner in which the commonplace sit
uation described interlaced torith what
immediately followed.
Here—and this is the point to be
brought to the front and borne in mind
—was a concurrence of time, place and
individual which had never happened
before, and in all likelihood would
never happen again, but which wore
every outward aspect of one of those,
rare and inexplicable tricks on the
part of Fate, as rare and mysterious
as mushrooms, freakishly contrived to
land some poor mortal plump in the
midst of a troublesome predicament,
like Napoleon’s star at Waterloo. Mer
cury blazed at mid-day on that mem
orable occasion, if you have not for
gotten this apocryphal footnote to
history.
Certain it is, at any rate, if Van
Vechten had been anywhere else at
this particular hour on this particular
Sunday morning, he would have
missed Witnessing an . incident which
presently was to jar him from the
lethargy of his ennui as effectively as
if the rotation of the earth upon its
axis were suddenly to be reversed.
And the incident, but one of a start
ling series, was not long in coming.
HOW QUEER FISH ARE BRED
Curious Results Obtained by Chinese
and Japanese In Selection and
Crossing.
The telescope fish, a monstrous va
riety of carp, is a creation of the
Chinese and Japanese fish breeders,
who are past masters in the art of de
forming nature. It has an almost
globular glistening body, gilded on the
sides, double dorsal fins and a long
tail of peculiar shape. Its eyes and
their sockets are very prominent and
resemble the object glasses of tele
scopes, whence the name telescope
fish. A carp possessing this abnormal
feature was discovered in Japan in
the sixteenth century, since which ep
och the peculiar character has been
perpetuated and combined with many
variations in form and coloring, by
careful selection and crossing.
The variety known as Yen-tan-yen
or “veil tail” preserves the normal
structure of the eye during life, but
its delicate transparent tail attains an
enormous size and falls in graceful
folds, like a veil, producing effects
Again from the hall floated the state
ly, melodious chime.
Nine o’clock.
With the first dulcet note, Van Vech
ten’s regard fell idly upon a man who
was passing along the farther side
of the street —the first human being he
had seen since taking up his position
at the window. He was not at all in
terested in the man, who was entirely
unknown to him; but the stranger had
advanced within his field of vision,
and it was much easier to follow him
than it was to look away. So he con
tinued to watch him, albeit but hazily
conscious of the fact, because his
thoughts were' occupied with matters
of vastly more importance to himself.
That Is to say, at the time he fancied
they were of more importance; subse
quently his opinions on this score un
derwent a decided change.
Only a few seconds later, in truth,
he regretted that he had not given the
man more of his attention —sufficient,
at least, to recall something of his
appearance. But even at that, he
never dreamed how nearly the epi
sode affected himself at the moment,
nor did he have any premonition of the
extraordinary events that were to en
.gue in the immediate future.
The man was walking with a certain
halting, indefinite slowness, the while
he studied the house numbers, as if
in search of a particular one.
All at once he stopped stock-still.
Van Vechten, as it chanced, failed to
observe this., for his eyelids, heavy
with loss of sleep, chose this precise
second to curtain the scene. Nothing
had yet occurred to prick his curiosity.
His lids drooped only for an instant,
to be sure; but within that brief space
the strange man’s bearing had sud
denly altered. He had thrown off his
irresolution, and had gone quickly up
the steps of the house directly oppo
j site. Van Vechten opened hie eyes
' only just in time to see him disap
, pearing through the doorway, and the
door itself swing shut.
The Silent House! The House of
- Mystery! The house wherein nobody
had even been seen to enter!
There was no mistaking the fact
that Van Vechten was galvanized into
an alertness which, had it been almost
anybody else under the same condi
tions, would have amounted to excite
ment.
“Say!” he demanded of himself un
der his breath. “Is this a pipe-dream?
Or did somebody really go into that
house?” And after a reflective pause:
“No, X wasn’t asleep,” he deliberate
ly settled the unwonted occurrence in
his mind; “I saw the chap coming
along the walk. Let’s see—what did
he look like? What was he doing?
What the dickens does it mean, any
how?”
There was nothing or nobody to an
swer these puzzled inquiries. He was
convinced that he had remained
awake, although drifting along the bor
derland of slumber, because he dis
tinctly recalled having heard the clock
in the hall strike nine. He glanced at
his watch. Yes, only nine. So he
could not have been asleep, even for
a second.
All of which may seem a ridiculous
ly trivial matter to be the occasion of
so much concern; but anybody ac
quainted with the circumstances
would not have thought so.
To begin with, there was something
positively repellent in the very appear
ance of the house across the way.
' Even the number on the fanlight—by
pure accident, 1313, for it was an old,
old number and not the true one at
all —was doubly and reiteratively un
inviting to persons owning supersti
tious weaknesses. And who of us, to
some extent, does not? Erected in the
days when high, narrow brownstone
fronts were accepted as the hall-mark
of affluence, it still successfully re
. sisted the encroachments of improve
: ment which otherwise modernized and
beautified the thoroughfare.
At the time the Powhatan Club
moved into its new quarters Number
1313 was vacant, and had remained so
up to‘something like three months
• prior to the opening of this story;
• that is to say, not quite two years.
How long previously to that it had
stood empty no club member could
say. During all the period within their
knowledge its begrimed facade had
' been an eyesore and an object of exe
cration; somber and brooding, it was a
sort of memento mori to the idlers
behind the big plate glass windows of
the lounging-room, a silent but per
petual rebuke to the folly of their
lives; which attribute had more than
■ once called forth a passionately resent
. ful tirade from some member who had
I that a “serpentine” dancer might envy,
when a little fish moves in the sun
i light.
Other Japanese varieties of the tele
scope fish are the "sheep’s nose,”
which owes its name to the convexity
■ of its body; the “pig’s snout,” which
s has a head resembling those of Asiat
, ic swine, and the “fan tail,” which
• raises and spreads its tail in the
: manner of a fan-tail pigeon.
! The Chinese breeders of telescope
; fish disdain these abnormalities of
l structure and devote their attention
l chiefly to coloring. By modifying the
■ temperature of the water, and by im
> pregnating it with lime and Iron,
I they produce startling shades and
i markings. Among the innumerable
■ varieties thus obtained we may men
i tion the “spotted,” with a belly of
’ silver, and sides and back marked
’ with blue, yellow, black, rose and car
mine dots; the crimson “ruby” and
i the “superb,” with glittering scales,
l scarlet belly, and black or bright red
: markings on the back.
i
l More than 2,000,000 men have been
i killed in battle in the last 50 years.
been unlucky at cards, or had con
sumed too much alcohol the night be
fore.
Then one afternoon the club was
electrified. Tom Phinney had been
staring unseeingly into the street for
some minutes. It struck him all at
once that the wundows and the front
door across the way were no longer
boarded, and that all the windows
wore blinds; the red stone steps, how
ever, showed no indication of having
been recently cleaned.
"I say, fellows,” he abrutly sang out,
“thirteen-thirteen's occupied!”
There was a concerted movement
toward the club’s window; everybody
present left off whatever he happened
to be doing at the moment and stood
silently gaping at the gloomy front.
“Blinds close-drawn,” somebody
presently remarked. "Wonder who it
can be ?’’ <
What was learned during the word
less, curious inspection Avas about all
the information respecting Number
1313 that was to be vouchsafed dur
ing the succeeding months. During
that time it was scarcely possible that
any person could have come or gone
within the eighteen hours that are the
liveliest of the twenty-four, without
attracting somebody’s attention at the
Powhatan. For as the weeks passed,
and the shades remained down by
day, and the windows dark by night,
curiosity grew apace; the house be
came more and more a fruitful topic of
speculation; and with its secret front
constantly staring one in the face, the
sign of life or activity must have
been noted.
Why should anybody want to main
tain such persistent, unnatural seclu
sion?
Inquiry at the estate’s office build
ing was productive of no enlighten
ment. Considerable difficulty was ex
perienced in gaining access to the
manager; then he at once denied Num
ber 1313’s occupancy. Whereupon
Tom Phinney felt that the Powhatan’s
committee was not being treated with
the deference which it unquestionably
deserved.-
“See here,” he said, thumping the
desk under the manager’s nose; “your
confounded house is situated right
across the street from the Powhatan
club—”
For the first time the manager’s
eye contained a gleam of interest. He
interrupted.
"Isn’t Mr. Percy Bonner on your
house committee?” he inquired.
"Yes, he is,” returned Tom, not re-
At That Instant the Clock in the Hall
Began Striking Ten.
ceding in the least from his determined
stand. He waited a moment, but as
the gleam died in the manager’s eye,
proceeded.
“Our body is select, you must be
aware, and we are proud of the quiet
respectability of our neighborhood.
There’s enough influence in our mem
bership to run out anything of a shady
nature —we won’t 6tand for it, in (
short.”
The manager acknowledged the jus
tice of this ultimatum, but merely
said: “If you see or hear anything
wrong, run ’em out; I don’t care.”
“We have a right to know who our
neighbors are,” insisted Tom. -
“Inquire of them,” said the mana
ger; “I can’t tell you.”
“Do you mean to say you don’t
know ?” —incredulously.
“Just that. The present tenant nev
er applied to us at all —have never
seen him. in fact. Occupancy of the
NEW WAY TO FIND PARTNERS
Up-to-Date Hostess Used Tiny Bou
quets Made in Pairs '
to Match.
At a large card party ’ the hostess
had her guests find partners by pass
ing tiny bouquets around in which
were put little lace paper frills. The
stems were wrapped in silver paper,
and the card attached said “Table 1,”
“Table 2,” etc. The four who had
table 1 found their place and the two
whose bouquets matched played part
ners. Fancy headed pins were thrust
through the cards so the flowers could
be worn. Every one was charmed
with this pretty idea, and in this same
way a hostess had her guests served
30 at a time at a big large “tea;” one
of the assisting ladies handed the bou
quets as those who were served passed
out and in this way It was easy to
keep track of those who had had re
freshments.
If real flowers are hard to get tiny
artificial ones may be used with good
effect, and if purchased at a worthy
shop, would be quit* expensive. Clever
THE FROSTBURG SPIRIT, FROSTBURG, MD
house was arranged in quite another
manner. Really, gentlemen, that is all
I am at liberty to tell you.”
And the Powhatan’s committee was
bowed politely out.
It was not for nothing that the
house was called the House of Mys
tery.
CHAPTER 11.
On the Stroke of the Hour.
A perpetual mien of Impassivity
which effectively repulsed advances
or familiarities on the part of the
strangers and persons whom he dis
liked, was perhaps Rudolph Van Vech
ten’s most noticeable physical char
acteristic; for an impassive face, and
the ease of manner which customarily
accompanies it, is due to one of two
things: Either a set of sympathetic
emotions that are sadly atrophied, or
else an acquired self-control so habit
ual that every genuine feeling is per
fectly masked. In either case habit is
not long in asserting itself. And it
has been shown that Mr. Rudolph Van
Vechten was capable of being startled
and astonished.
On the present occasion, therefore,
he did not long permit his amazement
to flaunt itself. Quite soon he was
the same imperturbed individual whose
presence had surprised the club at
tendant a few minutes previously.
It pccurred to him by and by that
while he had missed witnessing the
stranger’s entrance into the House of
Mystery, it did not necessarily follow
that he must fail to see him when he
emerged. Sooner or later the man
must depart.
Van Vechten was eminently well
qualified to wait, since all his energies,
and such ambition as he possessed,
were directed toward that most labori
ous of all tasks, “killing time;” despite
which, backed by a considerable fen
tility of invention, most of the min
utes of each passing day flitted by,
leaving him more bored than ever. So
he resolved to keep his station at the
window—all day if necessary—and sat
isfy his curiosity respecting the man’s
general appearance.
The .first twenty minutes or so were
alleviated by a lively anticipation that
the door would open almost any mo
ment, and the man come forth; but
nothing of the kind happened. The
house remained as still as it had been
for months. Not a blind was raised;
no sign of life was ma'nifest.
Then the watcher began to grow
restless. As the minutes ticked off
and nothing occurred, he glanced at
his watch with increasing frequency.
Presently he rose and went over to a
push-button, upon which he pressed
with unnecessary violence, afterwards
hastening back to the window under a
sudden apprehension that the man
might take advantage of his brief in
attentiveness to vanish —as the fellow
had caught him napping before.
A cocktail was presently set beside
him upon a tabouret; he gulped it
down, then lighted a cigarette which
he began to smoke feverishly. But he
tossed it away after a puff or two; he
had smoked too much the night be
fore, and the tempered spirits could
not remove the furry taste from his
tongue.
Another glance at his watch; near
ly an hour had he waited, for it was
now ten minutes to ten. Would the
fellow never appear?
And then Van Vechten’s attention
was all at once diverted. He had or
dered and consumed a second cock
tail, and was attempting a fresh cigar
ette, when he paused, the blazing
match suspended in mid-air.
He saw another and quite different
stranger approaching along the oppo
site walk. He knew instinctively that
this could not be the first man, but his
manner copied that worthy’s so pre
cisely that Van Vechten was con
strained to watch him instead of main
taining his unprofitable vigil.
He lighted his cigarette, flipped the
match away, and waited.
This second Individual was walking
hesitantly, just as the other had done,
and also seemed to be devoting his at
tention to the house numbers.
He paused before the house across
the way. There could be no doubt but
which was only imperfectly outlined
upon the red-curtained fanlight. Then
that he was searching for the number,
abruptly all signs of hesitation van
ished from his bearing; he went de
terminedly up the steps and rang the
bell.
At that very instant the clock in the
hall began striking ten.
f TO BE CONTINirBm.S
fingers will easily make them at home.
Rambler roses and forget-me-nots are
lovely.
Clever Ruse.
One of the favorite stories of Major
Le Mesurier Willoughby, who died re
cently at Cheltenham, England, con
cerned a soldier who had several
times complained of thefts of articles
from his kit; but the culprit could
not be detected. It was therefore de
cided to subject the men in barracks
to an ordeal by touch, and the cor
poral in charge of the affair explained
to the assembled soldiers that on the
floor of the mess-room he had placed
the barracks cat beneath an inverted
tin dish. The cat, he assured them,
would mew at the touch of the thief.
After the lights had been lowered the
men filed past to touch the dish. The
cat did not mew, but when the lights
were turned up it was found that
every man who touched the dish had
blackened his hand with soot which
had been placed on it. Only one man
had failed to soil his hand. A sub
sequent search of his possessions re
vealed the stolen articles.
Luxurious Wrap for Cold Weather I
ONE of the full, short coats trimmed
with fur which are unlike those of
any previous season and immensely
successful now, is shown in the pic
ture. A muif of the fur used for a bor
der about the bottom of the coat and
appearing in the collar is worn with
coats of this kind.
Costly broadtail fur is used in the
body of this luxurious wrap, and Fitch
fur trims it.* Few wraps of broad
tail are worn, in deference to a senti
ment which has grown up against it.
The handsomest plushes make up into
wraps quite as beautiful, and are fur
nished with the same expensive furs
in borders and muffs.
The heavier furs will not answer
for wraps of this kind. Natural and
dyed squirrel and ermine are used,
and sealskin is ideal for ample gar
ments which must not be too heavy.
Instead of furs, handsome plushes are
used for garments which are to be
within a reasonable cost. These
plushes in the best grades are high
priced fabrics, but at that, much less
costly than fur. There are cheaper
grades that will look well and outlast
the season. For wraps and outside
garments nothing is more fashionable
and more satisfactory than the plush
imitations of fur, which are often so
close in appearance to the original
as to deceive the average eye.
The furs most favored for trimming
coats are martin, skunk, civet cat, fitch
and fox. These are the moderately
long haired furs. Mink and sable and
ermine (all growing higher in price
constantly) are also employed. All
furs are used in wide and narrow band-
HIGH COIFFURE
PROMISES TO BE
LEADING STYLE
HATLESS ladies at the horse show
in New York appeared to be in
dulging In a go-as-you-please style of
hair dressing. But coiffures were well
taken care of. Waves and small curls
reappeared, and there was a plentiful
showing of high coiffures. Among
these were a few extremely high and
really very pretty new ideas.
Changes are coming and, in fact,
have arrived, but no definite style has
established itself as a universal favor
tie yet. The liking for covering the
top of the ear remains. But hair which
has been encroaching upon the face,
over the cheeks, is no longer good
style.
The chances are that in the many
new coiffures which have been de
signed for this season the ears will be
wholly or partly covered. Light fringes
over the forehead, middle and side
parts, hair coiled high or low, but al
ways waved, and little, short, full
curls are in evidence everywhere. For
popularity the high coiffure promises
to be the winner in the race for favor.
Much depends upon the styles in
millinery which are favored for spring.
For evening wear, and especially
where hats are removed, or not worn
at all, Miladi may wave and curl and
cull and pile up her crowning glory to
her heart’s content. Also her coiffure
ings, and in trimmings for costumes
and millinery.
Sleeves in the new wraps are very
roomy—the kimono and bat-wing
styles prevailing. 1 There is no trou
ble about crushing the bodice under
fur wraps, because of the light weight
of furs used in the body of the wraps,
and there are ample sleeves and arms
eyes.
The hat worn with this pretty coat
is of black velvet, one of few hav
ing a blocked crown. The trimming is
a generous, fan-shaped spray of soft
white feathers. There is an attractive
and novel bag carried for the accom
modation of the various belongings
which vanity fair must needs have near
at all times. The coin purse, handker
chief, powder puff, etc., placed in
small compartments on the inside, do
not distort the shape of this plain and
elegant accessory. It is of knitted
silk finished with silver rings and
silver filagree monogram, and is car
ried by a silk cord.
Good furs, in garments or in trim
mings, amount to a good investment,
if well cared for. It is not likely that
the cost will grow less; all the
chances are that it will increase for
several years. But furs must be
cared fcr. The industrious moth will
succeed in finding them when one
thinks he is well shut out. Cold stor
age is therefore good for furs, but '
they may be protected by placing
them in paper bags with moth balls,
and in cedar chests. They should be|
examined occasionally, hung in the'
sun and beaten. The sunlight is death
to moths.
JULIA BOTTOMLEY.
ornament or evening head dress may
be as elaborate as any of which we
have a history. Sqme of those design
ed for wear in Paris are said to be
twenty-eight inches in height, which
is something over two feet, you know.
But the Parisiennes have a certain
grace in carrying off extremes which
is peculiar to them, their stock-in-trade
for setting styles before the rest of
the world. They are to be followed at
a conservative distance.
Flower Boutonnieres.
The dark-hued costumes of winter
must be enlivened by a touch of color,
and this is often accomplished by the
wearing of a colored boutonniere.
Some very odd materials are used.
Metal bouquets are artistically tinted,
and medium-sized orchids made of
metal and delicately tinted are pretty
and frail, set off by dark green vel
vet leaves. Porcelain flowers are a
decided novelty, dyed or painted in
nature’s own colors. Small flowers
or fruits are seen in rich wintry tones
that harmonize with the costume.
Even oranges, lemons and grapes are
pressed into service. White velvet
gardenias are enhanced by gilt buds.
When combined with metal flowers
they acquire distinction. Flowers are
also made of a cloth that resembles
patent leather and is called “oil
cloth.” Its softness makes it possible
to twist it into realistic blossoms.
Fads and Fancies.
Jet is increasingly used as the sea
son advances.
Last year’s gown may be rejuvenated
by a fichu.
The gown of one color may have
two or three girdles.
There is a slash in almost every
skirt worn by women.
For little girls the Russian blouse
dresses are in the lead.
The smartest tailored <ostumes em
phasize the belted coat.
Coming of Beads.
There is a great vogue in beads;
they are used for embroideries, fringes,
girdles, and all sorts of things in dress.
Time was when sequins took their
place, but now beads are back again
tn full possession, and sue* sequins
as are used bear a stronger resem
blance to beads than to scales.
RUN JJEBOSSES
Democratic Party Dominated by
the Caucus. 1
Machinery Handled Relentlessly tot
Crush Opposition—Genuine Dia
cusslon on Important Measures i
an Impossibility.
Out of office the Democratic party la
always a zealous champion of freedom;
including free methods of carrying oni
public business. Then it is strongly
in favor of the most liberal conduct of
debates in congress. It stands for the
abolition of caucus rule whenever its
own caucus decisions have no power
to shape legislation.
In office there is a remarkable trans
formation. The party of freedom be
comes despotic. It uses the most rig
orous methods of smothering opposi
tion to the decrees of its leaders. Its
machinery is handled relentlessly to
crush those who dissent from the poli
cies of its bosses.
Senator Cummins told the truth, in:
the United States senate, when he de
clared that the course which was be
ing followed by the Democratic ma
jority in that body in respect to the
currency bill was autocratic and prac
tically destructive of real debate, and
deprived the senate of any other par
ticipation in vital legislation than the
empty form of ratifying caucus deci
sions. It was true, as he said, that the
bill had virtually been passed in the
Democratic caucus and all genuine
discussion had ended there, as far aa
the ultimate fate of the measure was
concerned.
It is nothing new in American gov
ernment. It is not revolutionary.
There is nothing worse than the meth
ods which have long prevailed. But it
is wholly antagonistic to the declara
tions and “official” principles of the
Democratic party. In that respect the
practice of the Democratic leaders now 1
in power mocks the professions of a
long series of Democratic conventions.
By What Warrant?
The abolition of party national con
ventions proper, as proposed by the
president, would mean the demolition
of one of the most inspiring, pic
turesque, characterstic, and on the
whole successful features of American
political life.
There is absolutely no commensur
ate reason or demand for any such ar
bitrary destruction of a distinctively 1
American institution that is the natur
al outgrowth of our party system.
Must every spontaneous and indigen
ous political growth in this supposedly
free country be mown down by the
scythe of statute, to make way for
Some arbitrary model cut to the pat
tern of the theory monger?
Issue Sharply Defined.
The issue created by the new tariff
bills is clear and unmistakable. The
Republican party has always con
tended that the remarkaole progress
and prosperity of the United States
have been due in a large measure, to
the protective tariff. The Democratic
party, presumably, argues that there
would have been equal prosperity un
der a tariff which would force Ameri
can industry to compete with cheap
labor Eyrope in the American market.
The test is now to be made. The
country will soon know whether a
tariff for revenue only will be as sat
isfactory as the policy of protection
to American industry and labor.
“The Nonprogressing Party.”
Since the Democratic party now oc
cupies the national stage, we had not
intended to indulge in speculation re
specting other political organizations
at this time. Nor shall we do so In
any comprehensive way because of
the value which should attach to time
and space. And yet we can not whol
ly ignore the suspicion that, If ever
remarks are to be adventured con
cerning the Progressive party, they
would better be set forth without de
lay, to avert a quite strong probability
that presently there will be nothing
of the kind to write about.—George
Harvey in the North American Re
view.
Effect of Democratic Tariff.
One of the first real effects of the
Democratic tariff measure passed by
congress to strike the Wisconsin 1 farm
ers will be the closing down of the
Rock county Sugar company’s factory
at Janesville. Orders have been re
ceived by the management from Capt.
James Davidson, the owner, to close
down the factory permanently as soon
as the present run of sugar is through.
—Chicago American.
Not Likely to Be Tried.
While tariff receipts do not come up
to Democratic estimates, the national
administration hopes to make up the
deficit from the income tax. A prun
ing of expenditures and promised Dem
ocratic economy might, however, be
a more effective means of attacking
the threatened deficit.
Remains to Be Seen.
Mr. Wilson seems to be a strict con
stitutionalist as to Mexico, and a loose
constructionist as to the United States.
Strange that the party of Jefferson,
the .arch enemy of federalism, should
now be making extreme proposals in
federalism at which Hamilton and the
“monocrats” would have balked! How
is the Democratic south, which is so
insistent on running its own elections
in its own way, going to relish Mr.
Wilson’s move In the direction of fur
ther federal interference with elec
tions?
Should Take Lesson to Heart.
The Republicans of the nation, plan
ning for next year’s campaigns, may
profitably note the ways of the Repub
licans of Massachusetts, who are now;
worse off than they were last year.
Everything that the Massachusetts Re
publicans have done it is for the other
Republicans not to do. —Providence!
Tribune.
So many stalwart Progressives are
returning to the fold that by the time
he gets back the colonel will feel at
home right in the Republican party.