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EDITORIAL PAGE THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN Published Every Afternoon Except Sunday By THE GEORGIAN COMPANY At 20 East Alabama St., Atlanta. Ga Entered as second-class matter at postoffice at Atlanta, under act of March 3. Subscription Price—Delivered by carrier. 10 cents a week. By mall, $5.00 a year Payable in advance. The Hobble SkirTll Menace to Virtue” « R « But It Is Bad for the Health, and Silly. It Should Have Died Long Ago. A medical journal attracts attention usefully hy denouncing “the hobble skirt." The editor thinks that the present styles are “a pitfall and a menace to the innocent and virtuous female, and as such are intolerable for our daughters, sisters and womankind in general.' ’ The hobble skirt is not immoral, or lacking in virtue, because it is nol INTENDED to be immoral. Women from sixteen years of age to eighty wear hobble skirts—millions of them—and these women are not immoral or lacking in the different kinds of virtue. The hobble skirt is harmful because it does for the legs and the body what superstition and various forms of ignorance do for the mind. The hobble skirt prevents a freedom and natural gait in walk ing. running and dancing It is responsible largely for the present “turkey trot " and other ungraceful, stupid and more or less indecent kinds of dances. These dances, which consist in hopping up and down in an ugly way and substituting wriggling and raising of the shoulders for natural, graceful movement, have become popular as a result of the hobble, which will not let the feet move freely. A woman with part of her dress or a rope or a silk sash tied around her ankles is restrained in her movements —interfered with in free walking, which is the most wholesome of exercises—and her health is injured. The hobble skirt is part of a half-silly, half-depraved effort to hamper the freedom of women and thus develop an unnatural, mis called beauty This can be seen in t he extreme in the tight shoes of the ('hinese. which compel the poor creatures to hobble t hrough, life; in the dreadful, abnormal condition of fat developed in their daughters by Hotlentol mothers, making them so huge in one particular way that they can scarcely walk, or the cruel fattening of other women of desert regions by mothers that stuff them with camel's milk. A woman thoroughly hobbled, whether it be with the hobbles of fat on her body, with the hobbles of class, prejudice or supersti tion on her mind, or the hobble of the modern skirt around her ankles, is much to be pitied. She is as sad to look upon as was that thoroughly hobbled lady, the Democratic party, during the last few days of the convention, and that is saying a good deal. What ihwn want is freedom—in the truest and highest sense of that word—freedom of thought, freedom of action, freedom to take part in all great public affairs, freedom from that shameful condition of inferiority which through the ages has compelled them tn make of themselves a changing, pitiful plaything for man, who would not give them equality. A Progressive Democracy vs. a Retrogressive Navy Since the Democratic platform has declared for an “adequate navy—sufficient to defend American policies, protect our citizens and uphold the honor and dignity of the nation"—is there any fur ther reason why the Democratic majority in the house of represen tative* should not cease to play politics and meet the patriotic sen ate amendment for two battleships and additional cruisers. There is no longer either justification or excuse for Defriocratic delay in this vital matter. The weather vanes nf public opinion, as exhibited in political conventions and platforms, turn all one way—toward a larger and complete navy. If the Democratic majority is afraid of public opin ion and afraid of losing votes by a sufficient appropriation for the national defense, that fear is now stripped of its terror The Republican convention and the Republican platform point edly condemn the Democratic parsimony in refusing to vote the ad ditional battleships and demands a stronger navy. When Colonel Roosevelt's third party convention assembles next monili we may oe sure that one of its strongest planks will he a ringing declaration for preserving and even advancing the status of the naw. And so the three prongs of the American sentiment, as express ed in the platforms of the three great political parties, prod sharply and insistently the mistaken policy of the Democratic house. The time for definite action has come. It is up to the Demo cratic house to say now in action, rather than in platitudes, whether this is to be a progressive rather than a retrogressive Democracy It is impossible for the party to go before the country as pro gressive when it stands retrogressive in the national defense. The Democratic party can not possibly assert a forward mission if it takes a backward step in reducing the American navy to a fifth place among the navies of the world. The eountrx will laugh at the profession which is belied in action and will resent the un patriotic and un-Americati policy of the house naval program. The challenge of public political opinion now calls squarely and resolutely upon Mr Oscar I’nderwood and other obstructionists who have delayed a progressive naval program to meet the demands nf their own platform and tn vote the battleships which are needed for the country 's honor and defense The Atlanta Georgian FRIDAY, JULY 12. 1912. THE SO-CALLED POOR By HAL COFFMAN. f ’ iWiiifF ' ■ ■ I, ■ I Wfe 1 If ' mW > ‘ 1 tn in : if IHMMBIir ■lfei Senator Elihu Root, in a speech delivered recently?- was talking of "a diffusion of wealth which should inspire cheerful confidence in the future." and he used these exact words: “Witness the 9,597.185 separate savings banks’ accounts, with $4,212,583,598 deposits in the year 1911. BY THE SO-CALLED BOOR." Those words—“the so-called poor"-—came to Mr. Root on the spur of the moment, and they expressed his real thought and feeling. Those who believe that there really ARE some poor people in this country, and that the poor are a reality and not a “so-called" fiction, will remember this saying. » , what Would Happen If Husbands Were Frank Absolute Frankness Otten Endangers the Happiness of Many Homes By ADA PATTERSON. (i I Y WOULDN'T you like to V V know what lie thinks of you?" one womhn asked another. They hail been talking of a Sphinxlike, and, because si lent. Interest-provoking man. If he had talked much, the spell would probably have been broken. "No," replied the otner. a note of alarm in her voice; "not always.". Vet a little English woman, who recently married the grandson of the poet Longfellow, tempted the gods of discord by saying that the ideal husband is frank. Rash lit tle woman who reckoned without moods! Moods are mental weather. Some times the sun of the spirit shines gloriously, and at such time it is safe to be frank. The sunshine has irradiated and beautified the land scape of facts. Rut there be times when the sky is overcast. Perhaps this mood portends a downfall of rain, a rattling of verbal thunder and lightning Or it may only be a temporary eclipse of the sun of good humor. Rut heaven spare us absolute frankness at these times! Some Questions That Husbands Do Not Like. Maybe the little bride confused terms. What she wished to say may be. "The ideal husband Is truthful." Certainly no normal woman wants lying answers to those ancient, honorable questions: "Where have you been?" and "Why are you late?" Husbands do not like these questions. They bore them. Rut the just husband be lieves they are one of the inescapa ble evils of married life, and lie gives answer more or less truthful, according to circumstances. The only man 1 know who had the hardihood to dispute his wife's right to ask these questions, dis puted also his mother’s, and he has been divorced, as he deserved. Truthfulness may be construed as an accurate answering of ques tions put: frankness as the volun tary forcing of facts upon us. If the bridegroom last week acquired by the hardy spirited bride who has been quoted is truthful, he will answer reluctantly when she says Do you think thi' frock is becom ing"" Not quite " becoming as the one you wore yesterday, dear." But if he is frank he won't wait for the question. He will say at breakfast—that trying meal which temperamental persons should eat alone—" What's the matter with that dress? You are looking worse than I ever saw you." Difference Between Frank And Truthful Husbands. In ten years she may say "1 lost my fresh color when I came to America. I'm dreadfully pale. Don't you think so?" If he is mere ly a truthful husband he will an swer. "You are a little paler, dear. We must take a run down the coast to freshen yot up." If he is a frank spouse he will not wait for qtfes lions, but will announce: "You're looking horribly faded. You're not nearly as pretty as you wore when I married you." If the bride is as spirited as a wife | know, she will The Wedding V eil By MINNA IRVING. CA XANDMOTHER wore it long ago J Mistily flowing dow n t'tver the stiff and shining silk Os her lilac wedding gown. Over her hlirhes. swift and bright. Over her golden curls. Over the blossoms on her breast, <■•>. r the sheen of pearls. Robed in billows of bridal w hite I'nder the' clouds of lace. Mother, breathing her marriage vow s. Knelt in her girlish grace. Oh. but she was a picture rare. I have heard my father say. Framed in the ivory-tinted veil, I'pon her wedding da'. % bift it out of the cedar chest. Where it lias folded lain: Now its delicate sprays must drape The form of a bride again. Look! entangled ano ng the threads. Withered and brown and dead. It keeps a sprig of the orange flowers Once crowning a fair young head. Dear. sweet woman, who laid it by With tender and loving care. With fragrant rose and lavender leaves Eor another bride to wear! May all y our virtues descend to me With the woven lilies pale Os this priceless treasure of antique point* Grandmothers wedding veil. retort: “Do you suppose you are the handsome man I married?" If he be simply- truthful and she asks him if he thinks she has paid too much for a rug he will answer: "May be they did overcharge you." The frank man will exclaim: "There is no limit to your extrava gance." The truthful man. when begged Io tell her whether she is becoming unbearable, answers: “Your nerves are a tritie upset, dear; you need rest." The frank man will rush into trouble with the remark: "If I had known what a bad temper you have 1 wouldn't have married you.” The truthful husband will an swer the inevitable post-matrimo nial question: "Do you love me as much as you used to do?" with "True love never changes." The frank man will not mince delicate matters. She will have no illusions when the conversation w ith him is ended, and he may have no wife. It would be rather painful to know what people think of us at all times, their actual appraisement of us at the moment. Because of their mood, or ours, we might hat e a lower rating than we would have received yesterday, or than that we w ill get tomorrow The lightning flash of anger might show us ourselves in away that we would never forgive the speaker, and would be ba-d press ed to excuse In ourselves. Moods are mighty, but their reign is bless edly short. Blessed be the man who invented silence! In crises it has saved bloodshed and spared broken friendships. Critical Situations Saved By Silence. Many a critical situation has been saved by enveloping if in the blessed veil of silence, for thoughts make no sound, and there is always hope that they may change Mark Twain inscribed on a pho tograph I have seen: "Truth is precious. Let us economize it." Doubtless he had suffered at the hands of some volunteer of un pleasantness who called himself frank. ' The w orld has some ugly . jagged rocks of fact. Life will be more beautiful if we screen their ugli ness by planting flowers of consid eration about them can at least refrain from brutality in the name of frankness. THE HOME PAPER The Education of the Voter THE THINKING CITIZEN He Is the One Great Asset of This Republic of Ours By THOMAS TAPPER. i. THE great asset of a republic is the Thinking Citizen. You. as a voter, will find that the whole proposition involved ih our form of government is as simple as possible. Hirst, we declared our independ ence < 17761. Then we mad* a constitution ( 1787). The Declaration of Independence was our first use of the Initiative. Bv this declaration we deposed the English king as ruler over the destinies of the colonies. THAT WAS DLR FIRST USE OF THE RECALL. The constitution begins with the words: "We. the people of the United States. * * * do ordain and establish this constitution." This was the use of Initiative ajid Referendum. Thus, these comparatively new words are only recently adopted names for POPULAR PRIVI LEGES that- have been in opera tion for nearly a century and a half. The Federal constitution applies to the republic as a whole, exactly as a state constitution applies to a single state within the republic. The president, senate and house of representatives stand to the re public as a whole, exactly as a ernor, senate and house (or assem bly) stand to a state. The State Is Republic In Miniature. The state is, in fact, the republic in miniature. In like manner, these three fac tors of government (1) president or governor, (2) senate. (3) repre sentatives, are the people in minia ture. Hence, the more perfect the ar rangement is by which the people shall say w'no among themselves shall run the affairs of nation or state, the more truly have we es tablished a popular form of gov ernment. Any step that takes the selec tion and election of the people's representatives out of the hands of the people themselves is a step away from the true principle of the republic as it was conceived by Jefferson. Washington and their Associates. n. The privilege of voting begins at 21. A man may be so fortunate as to live to exercise this privilege for 50 or 60 years. You can well understand that the first vote may be cast in doubt and uncertainty. But the second and third and fourth and after should be the exi%ession of a point of view that is becoming clearer year after year. You. as a voter, have to assist in providing the republic with men to do its work. Or. you may have the Letters From the People OWNERSHIP AT TALLULAH. Editor The Georgian: The Georgia Power •Company has had articles printed in the Atlanta papers in which they say that the dam which they are building at Tallulah Palls will back up the wa ters of the river and form an im mense lake, which will be more beautiful than the river as it now is. and that the water will run ovet the dam on into the channel of the river and that the dam will not dis turb the falls. The power company is trying to sidestep the issue. The question is not whether the dam will destroy the beauty of the falls, but wheth er the legislature of Georgia is go- > ing to allow the state of Georgia to be dispossessed of fifteen millions of dollars worth cf . If the power company own the. land bordering on the Tallulah river, they have a right, under the law, to stop the flow of the water entirely. If they do not own this land, thee have no right to build a ,oam or any other structure on this land, whether it will mar the beau ty of the scenery or not. Evert lawyer, except corporation counsel, who has examined the rec ords and survey of this is of the opinion that the land has never been granted, and that it is st ill th? property of the state of Georgia. The corporation officers should know that they have no title that will bear being aired in open court. Their counsel should know that the power company does not really own the contested property. Either this or they do not deserve the reputa tion which they bear as being among the best lawyers of the state. The corporation says It is arw ious to have suit brought to ride definitely and finally their title. The Tallulah Falls Conservation ambition to do some of it yourself. What is the question involved" Only this: Who can do this work in the best possible way. When the roof leaks, you go out to find a man who is long on fixing leaks in a roof, or you do it your self if you are able. But not oth erwise. Hence, you are called upon to cast one vote for a man to fill i leaking roof office. Who gets the vote? The man who can do the job perfectly and without loss of time. Having this one vote to cast on the leaking roof ticket, you would no more vote for a grafter than you would for a thief. Why? Because it is your roof. Well! this is your country. Remember that every public offi cer must be chosen, so far as you are concerned, for one quality alone. That is his ability to keep whatever roof he has charge of in perfect condition. HI. This point of view shakes al! the dreams and nightmares, all the shadows and empty noises out of politics, and places the whole sub ject on the basis of business, pure and simple. When politics (meaning thereby the efficient administration of any public office) begins to appeal tn you as the business of the public, do not fail to remember whose the republic is. It is yours and your neighbor's, your fellow workmen's, the motorman's and the baker's. Most voters think the republic consists of Mr. Taft, Mr. Roose velt. Mr. Root, Chauncey M. Depew and a few groups of men called the "money interests.” As a matter of fact, IT CONSISTS OF SEVERAL MILLIONS OF CITIZENS, among whom each of these men counts for one, just as you do. Rut there comes in a difference when you begin to analyze men. That difference may be expressed thus: Some think, and >om« d» not think. The Thinker Rises To the Very Top. The thinker rises to the top. and the rest fall under and hold him up. Now. the 1776 Declaration of In dependence can not make you think, and theXJonstitutfon of 1787 can not compel you to think. But if you have any interest in * running the business of the nation so that your own roof will not leak, you must draw up your own Declaration of Independence and your own Constitution. If you draw these up so that the republic of your mind Is prop erly established, you, too. will rise to the top. and Parking association has of fered to furnish lawyers to brine this suit and to bear all the ex penses of this litigation. If this suit is brought, it will .not cost toe state of Georgia one cent. The cor poration says that it wants the suit brought. The conservation asso ciation is ready to bring this suit. Under these circumstances, it is the duty of the legislature to grgtifv all parties and call on the governor to authorize the suit. CHARLES G. REYNOLDS' OPPOSES WILD LAND DIGESTS. Editor The Georgian: The wild land tax digest? should be abolished. There is no wild land in Georgia, or should not be Al! the land now held assessed and tax ed at a few cents or dollars t wild land, ought to be assessed and taxed as improved land, and b« made to bear its part of taxation. The wild land digests give rise to conflicts of title and litigation. There are cases where for years one or more persons have claitnr'i certain tracts as wild land and some one else has claimed the same, or a pari of the same. aS improved land. Having two di gests and no uniform system of designating improved land these conflicts necessarily arise. If the state should designate ev ery tract of land in Georgia by number and require that every con veyance designate that number to be legal, even if other description* be given, it would make titles mo" certain and prevent much litiga tion. Tt would also be easy to de termine whether all the lands are returned for taxation, and also be easy to equalize their valuation for th? purpose of assessment and tax ation. LLEWELLYN .1. BROWN. Social Circle. Ga.