The Weekly Times-Journal. (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 17, No. 36, Ed. 1 Friday, December 21, 1906 Page: 3 of 8
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V
TiM*3 -JOURNAL PUBLISHING CO.
Publishers.
OFFICE—fIS-1JO W. Grand Atwuc
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Three regular edition* every day In
the week, except Sunday. On Sunday,
cne edition Is Issued In the morning.
Entered at the Oklahoma City.
Okla., post-office for transmission
through the malls as second class
■latter.
Subscription Hates.
Dally, by carrier, per month...! .40
Dally, by carrier, per year 4.80
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Advertising rates made known upon
application.
• ♦
TELEPHONE 41.
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L-U ANNOUNCEMENT.
yii —
f RegUtcr of Deeda.
William Rand announces himself
a candidate for the nomination of
register of deeds, subject to the repub-
lican convention or primary election.
For Sheriff.
I hereby announce that I am a
candidate for the republican nomina-
tion for sheriff of Oklahoma county,
subject to the decision of the primary
or convention of the republican party.
JOHN. T. LAWRENCE
For Congressman, Second District—
THOMPSON D. FERGUSON,
of Blaine County.
CENTER OP THE STATE.
Those Idealists who wish to go to
some point at or near the center of
the state and there purchase land
upon which to build a capital should
tie aware that the metropolis of the
great state covers that territory. A
writer to an Indian territory paper
says the center of the state is within
fifty miles of the northwest corner
of the Seminole nationl By counting
townships westward from that point
It will be seen that the fifty miles
falls within the township In which
most of Oklahoma City lies. By con-
sulting the map further It will be
seen that there are eighteen town-
ships south of the city and eighteen
townships north. If there is any ad-
vantage in having the capital In the
center of the state then It must even-
tually come to Oklahoma City.
This is a question which need not
be discussed at this time as the en-
abling act kindly fixed the tempo-
rary capital at Guthrie until 1913, but
this location in the exact centre of
the state has a value Independent of
any consideration of capital location.
Jt Insures that no great outside city
can cut Into the trade of the jobbers
at this point. Here Is a magnificent
Jsrrltory on which no cities could be
Constructed, because It was withheld
from markets. When opened to set-
dement the Kansas cities on the north
gnd Texas cities on the south im-
mediately began a fight for tha trado
of all this great territory. It is per-
fectly evident that the city which
Was farthest from these competing
eltles would have a great advantage
and Oklahoma City has that distinc-
tion. Situated in the exact centre of
the proposed state, she could not be
crushed by either Kansas or Texas
Cities. A town near the Kansas bor-
der could not meet the houses al-
ready established at Wichita nor
could a town near the southern bor-
der oompete with Dallas, but Okla-
homa City, being at that point farth-
est removed from established con-
cerns, began to build up a trade which
the outside competitors could not de-
stroy and today those outside cities
consider Oklahoma City a real rival.
The metropolis of Oklahoma has
done wonders but Is still entitled to a
greater trade and must have It. In
a very few years she must more than
equal these outside rivals In popu-
lation as she does now In enterprise
and her trade area must be Increased
This does not mean enmity to those
eltles, but they are taking money
eut of the state which should remain
here.
The people of Oklahoma City
scarcely realize the responsibility
resting upon them, In pushing the
Interests of the metropolis of the
great state. Her rivals are great and
full of energy and see more plainly
than do the people of this city what
ran be accomplished by proper efforts
en the art of our people. Channels of
trade must be extended and new one
opened and this must be done now
or our powerful rivals will head us
ctr.
PEOPLE *TAKI\(i NOTICE.
The people of the territory are be-
coming thoroughly aroused over the
extravagance of the majority
ef delegates In the constitutional
convention. The national gov-
ernment appropriated $100,000 to de-
fray the expenses of this convention
but the convention will expend more
than twice that amount and there
will be a debt saddled ui">n the new
State before that state has an ex-
istent* Against this the people are
beginning to protest and that pro-
fast will grow in voluin- as time
passes
If the heavy deficit had coma after
careful economy the peoj.l
would
overlook the matter, but the people
reSle.mbor the scornful epithet* hur-
led at the minority when they sug-
gested that economy should be exer-
cised or the convention would create
a debt for the people to meet The
leaders of the majority thundered
their advice atteaotataoltlaaotaoiinnn
their defiance at the national govern-
ment, declaring that the free people
of Oklahoma would spend that $100.-
000 donated by the national govern-
ment. Just as these leaders saw (It.
After telling the national government
that the mighty men of that conven-
tion would not be dictated to In i
expenditure of the money donated by
the general government, they had the
audacity to appoint a committee to
ask the congress to Increase the dona-
tion!
It may be none of the business of
congress, as claimed by these demo-
cratic leaders, how this money is
spent, but it is some of the business
of the people of the new state and
congress may consider It some of the!
business when It comes to making
second donation. It is reported tha
the visit of Railroad Commissioner
Colquitt cost the territory $500. Does
any one suppose that congress will
make good a deficit caused by paying
for visits of men from various states
at the rate of $500 per visit?
Do these delegates suppose that
the people will make good a deficit
caused by paying expenses of visits
of a lot of high priced men. half of
whom are mere politicians? There
has been extravagance in the employ-
ment of help, in the printing bills and
in entertaining visitors, and is it any
wonder the people are complaining?
The people have no recourse at this
time. They will have to meet the bills
contracted by these delegates but
there is an election coming which will
give the people an opportunity to even
up with an organization which starts
out to squander the people's money.
At the next election men will be
chosen who will not sneer at sugges-
tions of care in the appropriation of
money to defray expenses.
O
LISTENING TO TRUST'S AGENTS.
Things at Guthrie surely had de-
generated Into a deplorable squabble
when Campbell Russell, seretary of
the board of directors of the Farmers
Educational and Co-operative union,
and E. Duffy, president of same board,
were Impelled to send a circular let-
ter to all farmers' organizations, urg-
ing them to demand that the various
delegates attend to the business they
were sent to the convention to trans-
act. Mr. Russell In such a letter
says:
Hearing rumors of the condition
that exists here in Guthrie I left my
home and arrived here twenty-four
hours ago. The half had net been
told. I feel it my duty tb warn you
that the conditions that obtain here
bodes no good to the farmers the
laborers, or the legitimate industries
of the Oklahoma that Is to be. This
suposed constitutional convention has
degenerated into a county seat con-
vention. Every other Interest Is be-
ing made subservient to that.
Thus Mr. Russell opens a long let-
ter to the substantial, honest people
of the two territories and that alone
would be a serious arraignment, but
he makes more serious charges Furth-
er on In the same letter he makes the
following charge of delegates listen-
ing to appeals of lobyists:
The mere fact that a sufficient
number of delegates were "whipped
into line" (you can hear that ex-
pression on every side) to put the
slate through—that alone would not
cause the apprehension, which Is felt
by those who consider that the mak-
ing of a good constitution Is of first
Importance; but. farmers of Oklaho-
ma, the town site boomers and county
seat lobbyists are not the only in-
fluences that are working here. That
appears to be the case on the sur-
face as they are (In the main) open
in their work, but the "system"—the
trusts and corporate Interests by
which we are opressed. and are fast
being shackled, have their represen-
tatives here—some of the "smoothest
ducks" that ever "came down the
pike" and they are working, not
openly and boisterously like the
county seat lobbyists, but quietly and
persistently, and. no doubt In many
cases, effectively.
It Is the work of these men that
we fear and dread. After the time
of your delegates here has been mon-
opolized by the contending county
seat forces—as the convention draws
to a close and the real work of
framing a few short days, then It Is
that the real lobbyist gets In his
work.
Mr. Russell did not state that the
smooth lobbyists were encouraging
the county boundary fights in order
to prevent the discussion of questions
of Interest to their employers, but
he doubtless believes such to be the
ease. He did not declare that those
who do not now care to keep the
pledges made to the people, are pur-
posely prolonging this fight so as to
have an excuse for not acting on
pledges but who doubts that he must
have come to that conclusion?
Th-
en ha
in
r«
edited to a degree
seks ago, would hai
niK M UT. WEIGHING GRAFT.
Congressman Victor Murdoek. in
his speech in the house the other day,
stated, as a member of the committee
on postroads, that through the falsifi-
cation of the mail weights "this gov-
ernment in the last ten years has over
paid for the carriage of mails about
forty million dollars."
If Mr. Murdoch's statement is cor-
rect asserts the Topeka Capital, that
Sunday malls are weighed but Sun-
days are not counted In the number
of days for which the average to de-
termine the payments for the ensuing
four years Is struck, and that this
system has been employed for thirty-
three years, the culpable negligence
of the government Is plain. When
this law was enacted thirty-three
years ago trains were not run on
Sundays, and Sunday was conse-
quently left out In figuring the num-
ber of days from which the average
was arrived at. It appears that this
method continued In spite of the
•:uiiI adoption of Sunday train ser-
y the railroads, so that Mr.
Murdoek charges that "at the last
weighing on the New York-Buffalo
route (New York Central) the weigh-
ing was for 73 consecutive working
days, but the mail was weighed, In
fact, for 90 days." By this method
the average was found to be 411,929
pounds, an annual graft t othe New
York Central on this run of $257,000,
oi a million dollars In the four years.
Congressman Murdoek makes a
sensible suggestion. He says that the
law is old and antiquated, that it does
not lit present conditions, therefore,
that it should be overhauled to make
it suit the times. The red-readed
Kansas congressman frequently
shocks the traditions and conven-
tionalities of the house by utterances
of this character, instead of confining
his protests to the cloak rooms or
commitee rooms. The house machin-
ery is perfectly calculated to suppress
Individuality, but Murdoek has broken
loose twice In the last six months on
the floor, both times to good purpose.
Kansas approves of this type of con-
gressman.
WHAT OUR SCHOOLS MIST DO.
Chicago Post:—The prime purpose
of our public schols Is the making of
first-class citizens. If they do not
do this for our boys and girls then
they are the most expensive and least
satisfactory of our public institutions.
Mr. James J. Storrow, president of
the Boston school board, had this
well In mind when he made a com-
parison before the Merchants' Club on
Saturday night between the industrial
and commercial progress of Great
Britain and Germany, in the last thir-
ty-five years. It is not long since Brit-
ain was far in advance of Germany
industrially. Germany has forged
ahead until now she Is well abreast
of Britain and Is In a fair way to
outstrip the latter country.
Every close student of the situ-
ation attributes Germany's unparal-
leled advancement to Intelligent edu-
cation along practical lines, and es-
pecially to methods that have been in-
troduced into the common schols since
the close of the Franco-Prussian war.
The money that Germany Is putting
Into public education she is getting
back again with interest through the
Increased efficiency of her citizen-
ship.
This Is what our public schools
must do, and to put them in con-
dition properly to discharge their
most important functions, practical
business methods must rule In their
administration. Boston, cited Mr.
Storrow as an example, has a school
board of five members. It used to
have twenty-four.
The present board, composed of
men who had served on the larger
and nloro unwieldy body, had as a
legacy from the old board a deficit
of $50,000. In one year, through
business management, this deficit has
been wiped out and the board has to
its credit a surplus of $15,000. Be-
sides the efficiency of the leaching
force has been very materially, In-
creased, and a high school of com-
merce, under an expert director, has
been added to the public school equip-
ment.
O -I
PLAIN IIJ IUHG 80MEWHERI
In discussing the compromise with
the railroads which came as a result
of the suits brought by Attorney
Cromwell, the statement Is made that
McAlester coal has been selling in
Kansas City at $4.50 per ton while, as
every one knows, McAlester coal has
been selling in this city at about $7.00.
We take the statement of a Kansas
City paper that McAlester coal sells
In that city at $4.50 per ton.
This is sufficient to show, if true,
that an outrage has been perpetrated
I on the people of Oklahoma by th<
two or all of them It Is generally
J held that the difference In price cam<
tes from McAlester to Okli
Ints and from McAlester to 1«
ty. If the railroads have
suCn thefts in the future.
This would seem to Indicate that a
railroad commission should have
power to fix a maximum rate. How-
ever. it would l e well to push the in-
quiry fuarther as there may be others
equally to blame. It may l e dis-
covered that It would be u good idea
for the state to own the coal mines
which the Indians now offer to soil.
Not that the state should go into
the coal mining business, but. if it
owned mines, it could prevent the
handling of coal from falling into the
hand of a few people.
The transportation question is a
very complex one, but when one
community a hundred miles away
from coal mines are charged several
times as much as people living four
or five hundred miles away, It takes
no expert to see that there is some-
thing radically wrong. A road can
carry goods cheaper to a point where
the Fame cars will come back loaded
than to a point where they will return
empty. These questions should
all enter into the adjustment
of rates, but there is not a person
In Oklahoma who is not convinced
that he has been robbed by some one
if McAlester coal sells in Kansas
City for $4.50 and we have the
authority of the Kansas City Star that
such coal does sell at that price there.
PARTISANSHIP CROPPING OUT.
The democrats In the constitutional
convention in their glorying over
there great victory in the last elec-
tion, imagine the state will always
remain In the hands of the reaction-
aries. Infatuated with this idea, they
propose to fix upon the people of the
state a political Judiciary and possibly
other branches of the state govern-
ment.
During the campaign letters were
sent out from the democratic head-
quarters in this city urging demo-
crats to go to the polls and vote for
democrats, as if the democrats should
win, the supreme court Judges would
be elected from the whole state and
not by districts. This the letter can-
didly declared would be done to pre-
vent any republican ever serving. One
member of the convention has offered
a clause for the constitution, not only
providing for the election of members
of the supreme court by the state
at large, but It provides that the
county judges shall be chosen from
the county or district where he is to
serve.
O
It is hardly possible that any body
of men could put Into the constitu-
tion any provision so scandalously
unfair and which 'would make the
entire judiciary the tools of a state
machine. . Jlow could such judges be
Intelligently nominated? How could
the people of Oklahoma county select
a judge for Beaver county They
would be selected by a state machine
or a state boss. Such a scheme would
be a disgrace to the age.
These democrats who propose to
select many officers by the state as a
whole, will, if they succeed in graft-
ing such outrageous provisions on
the constitution, soon regret such un-
fair and demoralizing trickery as the
state is positively certain to become
republican if it Is not so at this time,
and then they would get a very bitter
dose of their own medicine.
O
A stranger in the city Saturday
asked with enthusiasm if all the peo-
ple of this city are boomers. Are
there no knockers, asked he! That
was a disagreeable question but we
succeeded in convincing him that
who did not believe that this city had
the best streets, best street railway
system, best sidewalks, best schools,
best churches, more people, finer
dwellings, greater and better business
houses, better mills, lowest rate of
taxes, better opera house, better ho-
tels, more trees, brighter prospects,
best sewered, best water plant almost
finished, best city officials, most en-
terprising commercial organizations,
best stocks of goods, best government
of any city of Its age on earth.
Mr. Bryan makes
the delegates to ti,
convention, whfte not
careful consideration
cases of contempt, wl
does not occur In the
party charged with
If he demand It ha\
course before some •.i
possible to Imagine <
sons are guilty of
ward the court as
suppression even ..
house or outside tin
judge, but such cas-
rare. Judges froqupt
tines on editors wh<
outrageous on the .
humanity.
O-
< institutional
lew, Is worthy
It Is that In
i the contempt
ourt room, the
JOKER IN THE LAW.
Topeka Capital:—The way in which
technical "Jokers" get Into "the laws
seems to be Illustrated in some cases
now pending In the courts under the
so-called "reciprocal demurrage" law
of this state For many years it has
been the law that a shipper retaining
a car unloaded upwards of twenty-
four hours shall "be liable" to the
railroad company $1 a day demurrage
charges. Such charges under the law-
are presented and usually paid with
promptness. The managers and of-
ficers of railroads some years ago
formed an Inner corporation which
looks after the demurrage business
and the supply of cars, one of those
auxiliary railroad corporations that
enable the officials who organise them
to profit out of the side issues of rail-
roading.
Two years ago the reform legisla-
ture passed a "reciprocal" demurrage
statute, which provides that when
railroads refuse or fall to furnish cars
they shall be—not "liable" at $1 a
day to the shipper for the delay—but
shall "forfeit" $1 a day for the delay.
Now, under the laws of Kansas all
forfeitures go to the school fund of
the state. Therefore the shipper, if ho
enforces this forfeiture, receives no
benefit. The most he can do Is to* go
Into court and prove damages from
the delay, and in the course of long
litigation he might or might not prove
enough damages to be worth the cost.
How did it happen that the recipro-
cal demurrage law is not reciprocal
at all? That It gives the railroad Its
$1 a day with neatness and dispatch,
but the shipper for his demurrage gets
nothing?
At the time of its passage the re-
ciprocal demurrage law received gen-
eral approval as an act of obvious
justice and fair dealing. Buf It ap-
pears to bo hardly worth the paper It
Is written on. The little "forfeiture"
joker takes all the juice out of the
reciprocity, and no shipper In the
state, although the law has been In
force nearly two years, has ever bene-
fited by it. It is a statute that amounts
to nothing, and because of the fact
that the car supply trust knows It
amounts to nothing, It does not oper-
ate to give shippers a more prompt
supply of cars. Either the reciprocal
demurrage law should provide that
the $1 a day to the railroads for delay
in unloading shall be a forfeiture, or
It should provide that the $1 due from
the railroad for failure to furnish car
shall be a liability of the railroad to
the shipper.
ELECTRICITY ON S'lTAM RAIL-
ROADS.
It was reported from New York a
day or two since that trains for Yon-
kers were being hauled by elec
motors, and that henceforth all locals
on the route would be handled that
The work of electrification for thli
terminal has been In some respects
the most Important every undertaken
by any railroad. There are more than
600 train movements daily on the
five-mile section that leads to the
station and eight miles of switch
tracks, so says the Chicago-Record
Herald. Electrification is carried out
on two divisions of the road and will
extend ultimately thirty-four miles to
Peeksklll and twenty-four miles to
White Plains. It has been figured
that there would be a slight annual
saving by the use of electricity In-
stead of steam, but William Naver Jr.
points out in The Review of Reviews
tha tthe prime question with the com-
pany was not one of economy Klec-
trieity gives very distinct advantage--,
open." Even that question, however.
Is trated In such a way now as to
indicate a revolution In expert opin-
ion. Whereas ten years ago it would
have been difficult to find one steam
railway engineer ready to admit the
possibility of the ultimate more or
less general electrification of steam
railways it \Vould today be almost
difficult to find one who will den>
the strong probability of such a con-
summation within at most two de-
O
EARNED PI op| I s (.HA II IIIH
The time approaches when the new
water plant will be instulled and the
people given an ample supply of clean
water. All will rejoice- that Is, near-
ly all, will rejoice. There are a few
who will be sorely disappointed if
their predictions of long delays, or
boodllng and failure are not verified
There are varying reasons for these
ill-natured people hoping for some
mishap which might delay the com-
pletion of the plant for several
months. Some are so constituted that
they cannot cndui- to sec any work
succeed or be finished on time These
people believe all men corrupt and
look for graft everywhere.
Others, a very small number and
with no influence, have a personal
grudge against some member of the
city government or an angered be-
cause they could not work the city
officials, these would like to see de-
lays. in order to discredit the mem-
bers of the council so as to gratify
u small spiteful spirit.
There are others who would rejoice
at any failure which would give them
a polileal advantage in any coming
election. These politicians are vastly
more respectable than the first two
classes mentioned.
They do not want failure because
they are knockers, nor to gratify a
mean and spiteful spirit, hut simply
to aid them in a political campaign.
These men will lake advantage of
every accident, to further their own
political interests. Such things are
looked for In politics, hut the most
intense partisan is pure and white as
compared with the man who rejoices
over failure because he finds some-
thing new to knock about or the In-
fernal scoundrels who would blacken
reputations to gratify a personal spite
The people of (his city have wait-
ed long and endured many Inconveni-
ences, hut when tin plant is finally
Completed, the people will not regret
the delays nor will they regret the
experiments made to determine tin-
very best plan to adopt.
It will be evident to the people
that the delays, experiments, consul-
tations, Investigations and exhibition
of caution have resulted in good to
the city.
The long delay before bonds could
be voted can be charged to the peo-
ple themselves, but even here the de-
lay was fortunate. If a plant had
been arranged for five years ago, the
plant would not have been on large
enough scale and today the city would
be preparing for a new plant. As It Is,
the plant Is great enough for a city
three times the size of this, except
that mains would have to be extended.
It very often happens that delays are
fortunate. Delay in the construction
\ M W IVI'I OF r
ent
Wasliliu
tells tis in Technical w
Ills name Is Theodoi.
tlpllclty of his titles ,
ing emitted and he
in the north tower of th
Institution To enter th
frighten <* timid per
>\ith an indescribable 1
nnd snakes In big gins-.-
crabs, stuffed soa-hor> >
wonders of the might
of this seeming c.infn
great additions to th •
edge of the world. Vu.i
and paternal k<>\ ••run.
Gill for his labors the
month.
The fact that the sci>
sona! fortune of a quart-
dollars. and that he is .<
er guest in Washing
larks him as a menib
lion's New Volunte< i -
ealthy men who are ■
Tvlee for their countt
ss financial sacrlflc-
Mr Bache tells of
en who are working f
ieiit at paltry wag- •
arrlson Q i A ar th<
gist" who knows more
toes than anyone el - •
working for $25 a m<
Plnchort. a millionaire
slim $4,500 a year a-
I S. Forestry Hervie-
prominent men of we
Honed, who are cmpl"
ment work at rltli-
wages. With lome
spirit furnishes the
other Instances the ho
tlge, and the opportur
things," us Mr. llnosev.
a more powerful in- •
desire for gain. But.
motive, their seems t"
of aspiration—an asp
produces results «.iii -
valuable to the peopl
country at large.
. O
Hon A H. Colquitt,
missloner of Tcxh? de.
commission in Texas I
failed and the cause
weakness of law. but I.
the execution of the ;
argued that the frclgh
state are too high and
Is lame in not confer
commission the power
mum rate.
If the railroad comn
ceedud In securing to ;<
oper,
merit- ha
the peopl
oted the
aim delib
11 tin- que
freedom from
it ion and great
hlghe
Yorkshii
pool an
rate
the
without us
likely that
right
to the
nany bo
iuch an • \ ;■ t
mcy of the n
Mr. Colqull
stIiig laws we
would he imp'
prevent a sell out. It Is possible that
the vigorous protests of the people
may have the desired effect, but that
makes It none the less the duty of
the peopl.' to remember what was
attempted by the leaders of the con-
the people should then vote with the
party of economy and fixed prin-
ciple
This ma I
the peopl
In Kansas and
the Interen
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The Weekly Times-Journal. (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 17, No. 36, Ed. 1 Friday, December 21, 1906, newspaper, December 21, 1906; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc155059/m1/3/: accessed April 25, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.