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THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN.
THCIUDAY. Jl'I.Y 19. 190*.
The Atlanta Georgian.
JOHN TEMPLE GRAVES, Editor.
P. L. SEELY, President.
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THE GEORGIAN COMES TO
GEORGIA AS THE SUNSHINE
Love looka not with the e/ss, but with the mind;
And therefore la winged Cupid painted blind.
—Shakespeare.
An American Vicereine’s Death
Tbo death of Lady Curxon, wife of the former viceroy
of India, la an event of peculiar pathos, and touches
responsive cord of sympathy throughout the United
States.
A* Mary Letter, the daughter of a Chicago capi
talist. she was one of the most popular young women In
the United States. The wealth and luxury which sur
rounded her from her very girlhood left her still un
spoiled when her alliance to George Nathan Curson, In
1895, whllo he was secretary of Mate for foreign affairs,
opened up to her a more splendid destiny perhaps than
has ever fallen to the lot of any American, woman. At
the time of her marriage there was no assurance what
ever that ahe would one day be called upon to All the
high position which subsequently became hers
But four years later laird Curson was appointed to
the position of viceroy and governor general of India.
Then followed a career for the tactful and lovable Amer
ican woman which more than one of the crowned heads
of Europe might well have envied. Sharing with her
husband the throne upon which had sat the rajahs of
India, surrounded by a barbaric wealth and magnificence
which recalled the moat luxurious period of the nabobs
of that enchanted land, aha maintained her composure
and Indefinable savolr falre In such a manner as to en
dear her to all with whom ahe came In contact
The great durbar In which she participated was con
fessedly one of the most splendid In the history of India.
'We would haw to go back to the days of Cyrus or Bar-
danaplaut to Imagine anything more Impressive than
some of the scenes which marked the gorgeous festivi
ties.
But dissension arose between her husband and the
stern, Implacable Kitchener, who Insisted that the, milita
ry commander of India should be independent of the
viceroy In military matters. The tension became such
that Lord Curson resigned his position and returned to
hla homo In England, where he has spent moat of the
tlmo at the bedside of his wife, who never fully recovered
from the serious Illness of a tew yeara ago.
While ahe had been In feeble health for aome time,
her death was not expected, and waa a source of peculiar
sorrow.
Lost In the pomp snd ceremonials of a land which
hna long been proverbial for Its oriental splendor and
wealth, It seemed strange at times to think of the vlce-
rclno as an American woman, but those who are best
qualified to know declare that she always retained the
simplicity of a child of the people and a daughter of a
free republic, so far as her character and conduct were
concerned.
There may bs little to glorify in the conduct of Eng
land In India, but there waa much In toe life and loving
tanderncss of Mary Letter to command admiration,
The Matrimonial Epidemic.
We do not undortake to explain It, but content our
selves with recording the fact that the matrimonial ven
tures among people of distinction, announced during the
past few days, have almost amounted to an epidemic. In
nearly every one of them there waa something of a sen
sation, and the general public feel that they have been
given an embarrassment of riches.
Newport waa duly shocked to learn that Mrs. Burke-
Roche, who waa celebrated even before she made her
notable complaint that ahe couldn't live on a meaaley
hundred thousand a year, had been married almost a year
to a "whip" who actually earned hla own living. The
truth baa been divulged In aome myaterloui manner, and,
hlushlngly entering a plea of guilty, the happy pair have
sought seclusion, presumably on an ocean liner, to enjoy
their belated honeymoon.
It will be remembered that the announcement came
aftar the marriage of Mrs. Roche's dsughter, who entered
Into matrimonial bonds only s short time ago, and It II
entirely possible that mother and daughter may meet and
spend a pair of honeymoons together on the continent
And then came "Zasa” Carter’s leap Into the great
conjugal Perhaps. This marriage, too, waa carefully con
cealed for some time, and Dave Belasco exclaimed, when
he beard of It, that he would aa soon have expected to
hear the devil calling tor holy water aa to think of Mrs.
Carter entering, really and truly, Into n state of double
blessedness.
Fired by his mother's exsmple, young Dudley Carter
took occasion a few evenings afterward to announce that
be was engaged to marry Norma Munro, daughter of the
we)l known publisher, and a young wpman of very decided
personality. There seems to bo some difference of opin
ion between Miss Munro and the man In the case, as
she is reported to have denied the engagement, but per-
hapr this is only a part of the amiable fooling which
seems to be a legitimate pert of engagements, and It will
all come right In the end.
Most Interesting of all, perhaps, Is the statement that
no leas a man than Bourke Cockran, the great Tammany
orator and member of congress, Is engaged to marry Miss
Ide, of Callfornls. It Isn't so many moons since It wss
rumored that the distinguished Irishman Intended to en
ter a monastery, but he changed hla mind about that mat-
tar, at I salt, for It la since that time that he stood for an
other election to congress—which of course meant bis
election.
He Is one of the real forces in the Democratic party.
There Is not much likelihood that he will ever succeed to
the presidency, for there seems to be an unwritten law
that no great orator shall ever be chosen to the chief
magtstrgey of the republic. But he will always be a
power In the counsels of the party and on the floor of
the bouse, so long aa he remains there.
But the applause of listening senates to command la
not enough to satisfy all the cravings of hla soul and
be feels that his life should be rounded out by such a
compaulon as he appears to have found.
iYo wish him, and all the other brides and grooms
and grooms and brides-to-be, all the happiness In the
world, but we would Ilka to know what there Is In the at
mosphere Just at this season to precipitate this epidemic
of marriages.
The Tipping Crusade.
We have no deBlre to be flippant at the expense of
the unfortunate, but It would hardly be natural to pass
over without comment the fact that a waiter out In
Indiana dropped dead from heart failure when he waa
handed a five-dollar tip by a man from Cripple Creek
who had Just made a lucky turn.
The melancholy fact Is thst It a waiter In the east
had been handed a tip like that, particularly In one of
the fashionable restaurants along the Great White Way,
he not only would not have dropped dead, but In all prob
ability he wouldn't have turned a hair. He wonld have
looked upon It aa entirely a matter of course and If the
dinner party had been large and he bad been a bit more
attentive than the rules and regulations call for he prob
ably would have been actually Insulting If he had been
given anything lest.
Aa It was, it waa rather a small town In which the
Incident under discussion occurred, otherwise even the
new and more or less unsophisticated west would have
been more accustomed to five-dollar tips, fn Chicago,
for Instance, such an honorarium—to debase the term—
would not have been very extravagant
The occurrence will serve at least to call attention
to the crusade which a few xealoua people are still msk-
Ing sgalnst the tipping evil everywhere. It Is one of our
foreign Importations which has flourished mightily In our
American soil. Aa usual when we take up a matter, we
have gone further than the people we Imitate, ft haa
become a nuisance and It Is hoped that the crusade will
be effective at last
Somebody Is liable to drop daad at any time.
St. Swithin and the Rain.
Will It rain for 88 days more?
People who believe In signs and omena will take
something more than passing Interest In the question,
for last Sunday Was St. Swlthln's day. On that day It
rained and every day since, so, according to the supersti
tion. which has obtained for nine hundred years, we
should havo rain every day for the next 38 days.
Swithin waa an English ecclesiastic of the ninth cen
tury. He was chaplain of King Egbert and finally bish
op of Winchester. It Is he who Is said to have fstab-
llshed the tribute known as “Peter’s Pence," and the
regular contribution of tithes.
At hla death he was buried, by his own desire, in
the churchyard of the cathedral of Winchester, so that
the sweet rain of heaven might fall upon bis grave."
A hundred years later he waa canonised, and' the le
gend goes that when an effort was made to remove his
body and bury It In the church, on July 16, it began to
rain. This continued for 40 days, during all which time
the removal of the body had to be deferred, snd the pro
ject was finally abandoned.
True or legendary, something of the kind gave rise
to one of the moet generally accepted superstitions
fn, the world. The "otdeat Inhabitant" In every Chris
tian country la ready to maintain that 40 days of rain
are certain It It rain* on St. Swlthln's day. Hence the
proverb:
St. Swlthln's day, gif ye do rain, for 40 day* It will re
main;
St. 8wlthln's day. an ye be fair, for 40 days ’twill ratn
nae maUr.”
People generally are keeping their eye on the weath
er, and tho good saint—or at least bis legend—Is on
trial.
WILLIAM IRA VERS JEROME
ADDRESSES GEORGIA BAR;
SUBJECT, “PUBLIC OPINION"
New York District At
torney Leading
Speaker.
Mr. Churchill’s Platform.
Winston Churchill's race for the governorship of New
Hampshire Is assuming definite proportions and the peo
ple up that way, Including himself, insist on taking It
seriously.
On Monday the Lincoln Republican Club met at Con
cord and adopted a platform which promises a num
ber of reforms.
The platform advocates the enaotment of laws pro
hibiting the giving of free railroad transportation; the
election of railroad commissioners by the people; the
taxation of the property of public service corporations
their true value; prohibition of political contributions
by corporations; publicity of campaign receipts and ex
penditures; public registration of lobbyists;' nomination
candidates for office by direct vote; stringent enforce
ment of the liquor laws and the present laws against
gambling, Including book-making at the Salem race track
and elsewhere.
In hla letter of acceptance Mr. Churchill says In part:
“I subscribe without reservation to the several
propositions today set forth, and would suggest that
they be submitted to the other candidates for gov
ernor. If they will all assent the success of the
cause is assured, and that Is more to me than any
personal consideration. In auch event. If thought
desirable, I would gladly efface myself iu behalf of
such one of the other candidates as the Lincoln
Republican Club thought fit to Indorse.”
The Indications are that the Lincoln clubs through
out the state will be content to have Mr. Churchill as
their standard bearer In the approaching campaign, and
that he will make It very uncomfortable for the Boston
and Maine railroad, which Is represented aa dominating
the situation in the granite state.
His success at the polls will be even better than
dramatising bis book. x
WANTS.
To the Editor of The Georgian:
I want to seei a sun-tanned preacher with plow-
handle corns In Ix.ls hands.
! want to see a national banker hoeing a bean patch.
I want to see a politician who says the country la all
right, and won’t go to ruin, whether he la elected or not,
and who la running for the office and not solely In the
Interest of ths dear people.
I want to see a man In the Georgia legislature with
backbone enough to make an effort to past an honest
election law bill.
I want to see aome big railroad offlalala who carry
grander and nobler sentiments, and have mors feeling
and love for their people than Sam Spencer hat.
t want to see s newspaper printed In Macou that,
when speaking of Democracy. It don’t seem to think I am
the whole thing, and when speaking of farmers’ organ
isations won’t say It’s a good thing If they will only keep
out of politics; and when speaking of Popullsta will not
want them all disfranchised, and let the ring bosses, poli
ticians, corporations, their henchmen and the negro vote.
1 want to see a Judge that will make It aa hard for
millionaire murderer as for a penniless negro murderer,
and as hard for a Rockefeller rogue aa Tor a negro hog
thief, and treat a firm who administered poison by means
of canned meats, aa an Individual who administered It,
In wines, fruits or confectioneries.
I also want to see a United State* Judge who will
not sell hi* learning and honor to the money power and
throw In a lot of Injunctions.
And I do really want to see one—Just one—honest,
unselfish, truthful, free from greed officeholder, one who
la earnestly and honestly striving to serve his country
and people.
And then when all these wants are gratified, I shall
earnestly look for the millennium. J. B. HOWARD
By J. WIDEMAN LEE.
Warm Springs, Oa., July 19.—The
annual address before the Georgia Bar
Association was delivered this morning
by William Travers Jerome, district
attorney of New Tork. Hie address,
the aubject of which waa "Public Opin
ion," waa aa follows:
Mr. President and my brethren of the
Georgia Bar:
I am sure I greatly appreciate th<
honor and compliment of your Invita
tion to address yotr on this occasion.
When your learned president some
months ago extended to me the Invita
tion to be present and speak, the pleas
ure afforded me—and the distance of
the event—made It very agreeable to
accept and easy to promise anything;
but I fear, that as the time approached
for me "to make good” on my accept
ance, diffidence effaced pleasure, and aa
I stand before you I feel a greet deal as
I did when as a led I wea making my
first argument before sn appellate trib
unal. And os then I stuck very close
ly to my brief, I must be pardoped If I
do so now.
Tha fundamental and real reason for
gatherings such as this Is not to listen
to the learned papers which may be
read. These are Interesting and often
valuable contributions to our knowl
edge of particular'subjects and they
serve, In a measure, to characterise our
meetings. The reel reason, though
perhaps not gentrally recognised and
seldom stated, Is deeper and the reeults
are more valuable than the elucidation
of some abtrusa point of law even when
It concern! Important questions of the
day.
The value of such gatherings le be
cause they bring the members of our
profession Into closer personal contact
and acquaintanceship. They make us
realise our power and Influence and our
capacity for service, and they develop
a solidarity and professional unity and
a spirit which haa In It tremendous
possibilities for good. I think no re
flecting man leaves auch gatherings
without having hie pride In and love
for his profession Increased and quick
ened and a keener sense of honor and
responsibility to his professional breth
ren awakened.
I cannot bring for your consideration
a learned paper on some legal subject
The reasons why concern me alone and
would not Interest you. Moreover, as
I looked over the program of your ex
ercises I saw there was little need of
enlarging the discussion of purely tech
nical subjects. .
If I am correct In my conception ot
what the fundamental purpose and re
sult ot such meetings as this la. It may
not be out of place at this time to of
fer a few reflections upon "Public
Opinion, Its Power, Some of Its Evils
and Injustices, and Our Duty aa Law
yers to It.”
Of the power of public opinion no
one has doubts; of Its evils and Injus
tices few care publicly to speak, but of
these every thinking man Is aware, and
our duty as lawyers toward It and In
fluence over It Is little thought of.
Difficult to Determine.
There le no mystery as to what pub
lic opinion le. It Is simply the opinion
held by a majority of persons, usually
conceived of ee a large majority, upon
any given aubject at a given time and
place. But to determine what is public
opinion upon any particular subject at
a given time and place Is often the
moet difficult task that can be under-
tikm
Nor again, Is there any mystery aa
to why public opinion Is so potent
Ultimately no doubt Its power rests on
the physical strength of a majority, but
Its Immediate motive force le not found
In thla. Kmereon haa touched the prin
ciple when he aays; "Yet,we hare the
weakness to expect the sympathy of
people .In those actions whose excel
lence Is that they outrun sympathy,
and appeal to a tardy Justice.” The
men who ere doing things, who are
thought to have, end ofteq do have and
exercise power, no lees than the great
mass of the people whose individual
opinions go to make up public opinion,
crave sympathy and approbation. There
are men, guided by a high sense of du
ty, who will do and continue to do
their duty aa they see It regardless of
this majority opinion-which we call
public opinion, but with how much ef
fort and depression I The man who de
clares he le Indifferent to public opin
ion, If he be not a fanatic, le too often
something of a fool and a knave—a
knave to lie and a fool to think you be
lieve him. To a public officer, the dis
charge of his duty with or In the face
of public opinion le like the difference
In the running of an engine with oiled
or sanded bearings. -
How potent public opinion le Is
everywhere evident to thq lawyer.
Whet more solemn declaration of Its
will can a people make than to declare
In Its constitution of government that
a thing shall not be done and that the
legislative body shall enact aultable
law* to prevent the doing of the pro
hibited act? And yet he* Maine, for
example, been able to enforce Its pro
hibitive law*? Do not Ite sworn offi
cer* almost everywhere fell to fulflll
their oaths of office? Like officers do
not fall In their duties where crimes
such aa larceny are concerned.
In my own state the constitution pro
hibit* gambling and enjoin* the legisla
ture to pass laws to prevent It. The
legislature, however, has dared to pees
a law which while In form aimed to
prevent gambling on race track* was
notoriously designed to protect It, and
this waa possible only because public
opinion permitted.
There Is a large group of laws, nota
bly those concerning the social evil,
restriction on the sale of liquor and
Sunday observance, which will Illus
trate the power and the evils, too, of
public opinion.
It would be Interesting and Instruct
ive to have some competent person
trace the genesis and by comparative
study give us the bletory of the growth
bll*?* from representative gatherings
Into bodies of delegates whose chief j
function Is to formulate and perfect In |
detail measures dictated by the people ’
as a whole, or by a majority or sup- :
posed majority of them.
This Is the natural and logical out* j
come of democracy In large, complex ;
and Intelligent communities like ours. j
Whether we like it or not. It is a con
dition which confront^ us. It seems to
me wise and good men will not seek to ]
change it, something I believe Impossi
ble to do, but frankly conceding the
great and, if possible, growing power 1,, mT - t . wire
of public opinion, they will seek to In- T Sew y orli July j,._ w
fluence It, to form and guide It an.l ... ..
of tills longing for approbation and
sympathy which Immediately gives to
public opinion Its power. But whatever
Its cauee and whatever Its history, pub
lic opinion stands today a* the moet
Important single Influence In the life
of the nation.
Public Opinion Nearly Omnipotent.
With us. as perhaps with no other
nation, and now aa never before, public
opinion le nearly omnipotent and ha*
largely converted and tends to convert
more and more our legislative assem
SOUTH’S GROWTH AND PROGRESS
THE RECORD IN RAILROAD BUILDING
T
From The Chattanooga Tradesman.
HD moet prosperous jeer In the his
tory ot railroads In the Mouth snd
throughout the country, In fnet,
closed with the flu-si year 1806-190!, on June
30. There Is no better wsy to Judge the
conditions of the country then by the oper
ations of Its railroads This being tree, the
tatter half of 100G nnd the llrat bslf of
100! were the banner period of genera
business In the South. All previous record*
were broken, every railroad In Ibe Booth
haring don* s larger budge** during that
period than eny similar period liefore. The
volume of business wee phenomenal, but,
according to the eertmstes ot official; who
hero carefully looked Into the condition*,
the new flee*1 veer will brook the marvel
ous record of that lust closed. 1 Hiring ten
mouths of the twelve Jnet peat. the trunk
Mure In the Mouth did a cepsetty buslneer
In moving freight end experienced the Inrg
eat peesengrr buelnrta they have ever
known. Branch llnee enjoyed slmoet es
great Inereeee In tonnage oa the mein llnee
nml many of theoe feeder* thot had oarer
before been poylog property, earned good
dividends for the owner*.
The year wee remerhsbl* In many re-
*neete. Freight moved toward every pofat
of the compass, showing that tha peculiar
local condition* brought the great revenues
to the railroad*. The South produced
more guoilB demanded In other sections
than It ever did before, and consequently
laiught more heavily In the Northern and
Eastern markets. Commercial Intcreouree
-tween the cttle* of the southeast and
aouthweet and northwest w*s_ —
IP
The'"port! on' the'tlnif of Mexico and the
lower Atlantic developed their commerce
marvelously, giving a tremendous Inereeee
In freight* hauled. Cube, the Panama
country and Mexico were heavy borer* In
the United Bute* nnd the-great bulk of
thla tragic w*» handled by the railroad*
In the Booth through Southern port*.
Krerythlng seemed to work to the hand of
the railroads recoiling In * volume of buet-
neas that surprised the moat sanguine.
While the Month ha*Juid a number of en
terprising mgnnfaetorlng cities, tbeee end
numerous others aemed to take on new life,
and many of them have doubled their for
mer tonnage. IMveratteatloe of crop*
throughout The Booth added many more
thousands of ton* of freight and all three
swte arse
Iu* use constantly with a. demand for prat
er than the supply. During the Brat, two
month*. July and Angnat, ISO*. Imelnee*
wee very large,
parity of the n«
month of Meptemh—. .
ulug up to the prenent. few of the .rail
road! could her* moved * greeter
Of business than we* offered them. Six
months of the time, the roede were clrar-
ly unequal to the teak, and the nneeltelled
Temand fov ears wa* general.
Few of the railroads have been able to
Isaac accurate statement* of the peat year e
Imalneas. hot many have Issued estimate*
which are next to atartllng. 1110 Nashville.
Chattanooga ami Bt. I-onT* railway earn,M
nearly a million dollars more than Its
capital stock. The Tralsvlll* and -\*.h-
vllle, Illinois Central <joe*n ami Creocenf
Monte. Atlantic Const line. Meaboard Air
Jne amt several others have laened rati,
mated statements skewing that their earn
ings were Jnet about the amount of their
capital atock. The Southern railway en
joyed as greet or greeter Increase than
other road* sud lint ft* It* beery capital
isation Its ahowtns would be ** good a*
*"-fbe result of inch prosperity I* already
Ma-JSS °,M
operating In the Mouth hut le now si
rs n£lng t-> build away new linn amt eg-
*The Illinois Central prepnera building a
line from Nashville to Jeckuoe. Mia*.,
connecting with the mala Uas to New
Orleans. The Frisco System proposes build
ing from Itgton Mouse, 14., to Jackson,
Birmingham and Nashville. Tha Mobile,
ckeon ni ‘
JacL .
line to Jackson. Tenn. .
mlngham and Atlantic Is now building two
lines Into Atlanta and one to Birming
ham. Thla company also propose* build
ing over the right-of-way of the Nashville
end Huntsville railroad to Nashville. The
Southern railway la building from Hteren-
sos, Ala., to Chattanooga, to mile*, and
It building another Important line from
Walland, Tenn., to Anderson, M. C„ form
ing a more direct line to Charleston in'
Ksvannnli for Its lines Ml Tennessee am
Kentucky. Besides these, tha Southed,
will butld * acere of earnll tap Mura.
Thee* are bat a tew of the numerous road*
that ere under construction now or prac-
’*"■"■ certain to build during the prra-
ly e |p g| _
ent flecal year .Other Southern roads'ere
drelt
practically'’certain to'hut!
gregattr —
success
haa
try,
new companlee here been organised for
roe of railroad enterprise* In the Booth
created Interest throughout the conn-
and In the past few monthe a score of
companlee here been organised for
the purpose of building roads In the Month,
hat have given no aemnnee of their abil
ity to do so aa yet. Her era I of them, how
ever, will probably materlaHs*.
rerhapa, the moet encouraging feature of
S llrnad manenven thla year la the build-
g of * second track by s number of the
moet Important trnnk lines. The business
on tbs trunk Hnes has grown In the past
year to where It can not be handled sne-
ind t number
•-tracking the
. . — .s pushing us
double-track work ou through Memphis to
New Orleans. The Louisville and Nashville
le preparing to build the second track
from OalletTn, Tenn., Jnet north ot Nash-
make It work for higher things In the
varied life of oar people.
Correlative to that craving for ay
pathy and approbation which la
large nn element In giving public opln
l -I, it- I„,u 1-r, 1- th.it j-rin- Ip],- .-I till!
of human nature thst demands con
formity and also tends to yield It.
cannot but think that this largely
springs from pride of opinion apd In
tellectual Iatlnea*. How few of us have
substantial reasons for the opinions
bold on any subject. We have adopted
them because nature abhors a vacuum
(n the mind as In the physical world,
A head-line 111 a newspaper; a hasty
flance through sn edltoria'l; a bit of In-
’ormatlon or misinformation gathered
from a speech or In conversation; our
belief that moat ot our'associates hold
a particular view: esrly education and
environment; these and such es these
are the reasons for most of our opln
Ions. Hut having once accepted a be
lief and provided or been provided with
a formula for It our pride Is enlisted
and w* are too riMa iegfly go eMtagi
the dissenter without any examination
of the reasons for hla dissent. And
thus public opinion Is not Infrequently
formed lightly and upright men bent
only on public service are mad* to feel
the weight of Its displeasure because
they have darsd to run counter to It
d advocate measures or do sets
which rest on the w isest and moat un
Iflsh reasons.
* Standpoint of the Individual.
It I* true enough, as the poet says
that "the Individual must wither and
the world be more snd more” and I am
now considering the matter from the
standpoint of the IndlvlduaL, But there
Is a tremendous waste In Injustice ot
thle kind. It tends to drive end keep
the best men out of the public service
and to bring Into It a 'group of time
servers who under cover of bowing
public opinion seek only their own In-
crests.
■To say that the rule of public opinion
has Incidental evils 1* after all only tr
•ay that It Is like all human Institu
tions. My reeding and my own obser
vation and experience make me believe
that the people ere never consciously
unjust or ungenerous. Indeed they for-
Ive In their public servants everything
>ut pecuniary dishonesty end often
overlook transactions which from
moral point of view It Is difficult to dls
tlngulsh from the latter.
A public man may with safety oppose
public opinion If his views are well
founded and he can command a hearing
for them.
A public officer may, without harm to
himself, refuse obedience to public
opinion If he be honest, snd has good
reason for his conduct, and can make
the people eee wh
with their demani
But It la this Inability to get a hear
ing which enables public opinion to
compel many men to conformity rath
er than to draw them into leadership
and make them Influential In lta own
formation.
In many parts of the country, and es
peclally In our great cities, a man’i
ability to command a hearing must
largely depend upon the newspapers,
and It Is by them that the greatest Jus
tlce and sometimes the greatest lnjus
tics Is done.
Power of tho Newspaper.
If public opinion Is the greatest sin
gle force In our public life, surely the
newspaper Is Incomparably the great
est factor In Ite formation and spread
A wise English writer In an scute
and friendly criticism of our Institu
tions has spoken of the newspaper as
discharging three functions, vlx.: "Nar
rator, advocate and weather-vane.” It
Is as ’.’narrator” that It haa, I believe,
lta greatest Influence. By Ms reporting
of facta—and too frequently Actions—
of all facts public and private, It fur
nishes the material for the formation of
public opinion end gives that publicity
without which government by public
opinion could not safely exist.
wsj wss i—*uii ,ae seconn iracx rrom
t'hettsnoogs through Kaoxvlll* to Morris
town. Tenn.. end le ready to doable-track
Ite mein line from \i ashing ton to Atlanta.
On a nnmtier of other divisions some dou
ble track work will he done. The Queen
xml Crescent also propose* building a sec
ond track from Cincinnati to Chattanooga,
sad will likely liegtn the work beforsths
flora of the jeer U07. It wee compere-
tlvely Imt * few Tran ago when bank
ruptcy threatened < majority of the rail
roads of the Mouth. Then when ersry one
Is able to declare a handsome dividend In
addition to making eitenslre improvements
It le not strange that Inreeton throughout
tho country nr* attracted by the statements
of the Southern railroads.
While the southeast Is making rapid
rides In Increasing Its railroad rtclUtlM,
Is not even doing as orach as the south
west. fa Tex** amt Loutatana. railroads
ere balldlng In almost every direction. The
Colorado Joutbern, New Orieee* ted I’s-
ride, * division of the Frisco, l« 1-vlr.r
rapidly constructed from Baton Bnnge IB
DeQelney, where M connects with the Ksi
■as City Mouthers to Beaumont. The M_
lerala. Brownsville and Mexico le searing
completion from lirownnlll* to Houston,
the Baton Booge line will connect
It over the Beaumont, Hour Lake
and Western. All of theoe are known ••
nag ._
eel hie southwestsr* Maes with the
tork Island and Frisco proper. The St.
out* Southwestern Is building from near
Shrew-port to Beaumont, Houston and Gal
veston. The Hants F* to buMdlsg from
nesr Beaumont through IouUtana with
New Orleans St the objective point, ac
cording to s high official of that com
pany? Not less than twenty other lines are
building through Texas sud as many era
projected m Louisiana. Arkansas snd Okla
homa- Doubtless, rang of them wtn ac
complish some construction this year.
Those backed by the larger romps ales,
however, are pnctlrtUy certain to mate-
K sitae. Every section of the country I*
■proving In a general way snd the rail-
roads are haring dlffienlft to keep psern
The financial ektea skew no panicky symp
toms. and. barring unforeseen things, the
Mouth wIM add 14 pee cent to Its railroad
mileage within the next two xeera.
The newspaper seeks, or should seek,
-to discharge Its function as advocate
through Its editorial column, but It
seems to me thst there Its Influence,
though still great, has diminished. It Is
the editorial page which "the man on
the street" he* especially learned to
discount, while he too often accept* the
statements of the news columns a* ac
curate account* of the.events they pur
port to chronicle. It would seem, more
over; a* It the growth of the megatlne
has had something to do with the lose
of Influence of the editorial page. Being
leea ephemeral snd partisan In char
acter, the articles In the magaslnce
have been more Judicial In
tone, and their greater length
have given opportunities denied to the
editorial writer, with the result that
their Influence on public opinion has
been steadily Increasing and so far has
been a beneflrent one.
While Important In this character. It
seem* to me that the newspaper Is of
least value aa a "weather-vane.” Thla
may well- be because commonly no
more difficult task can be set than to
determine what really Is public opinion
on any' subject at a given time and
P *After sn event, especially such an
on* ss an election, It I* easy to see
whet public opinion was, but before
hand It la different.
Its Mott Serious Publio Wrong.
As the most Important function of
the newspaper, ee It effects public opln.
Ion, le-dlscharged In Its acts as "narra
tor," so It le a* "narrator” that It does
ite moat serious public wrong.
When It frankly sets ss "advocate,'
as It does In Us editorial page, public
opinion le helped or harmed as the
cause advocated Is good or bed and I*
accepted or rejected, but public opinion
Is not deceived. But when under guise
of reporting facts It wilfully misstates
and "fakes” It does serious snd, to In
dividuals, often irreparable Injury.
Now Is It possible to here e wise end
beneficent public opinion when the sup
posed facts upon which It I* founded
are not facte at all but flctlone?
I am not learned enough In the his
tory of journalism, nor have 1 been a
doe* enough observer to know whether
or not thfs evil la of modern growth,
bqt that It le a real and eerloue evil Is
ond dispute.
am not thinking now of those mis
statement* which simply go to make a
good story, or which pander to a crav
ing for sensationalism. These usually
only affect tndlvudual* In their private
relations and not public men snd meas
ures. I mean those sinister snd delib
erate misrepresentations which seek,
under the guise of reporting the news,
to play covertly tn the news columns
the part of "advocate” and to Influence
pqbllc opinion on men and measures In
a way not possible through the edito
rial page when the news columns are
straight.
There I* one Injustice which public
opinion not Infrequently does, and It la
on* which lawyers ran do much to cor
rect. and that Is the criticism of Judges
i Continued on Oneotit* Peg*.
Nile It la "An
drew Carnegie, citizen of the world"
these ilny*. the greet Iron master has
never forgotten that he made his
money about Pittsburg, and so when-
ever anything happen* in Pittsburg,
especially If It bears the name of Car
negie, he Is heard from. Twenty of
the most notable men In Europe are to
be hla guests when the melt/building
of the Carnegie Institute Is opened next
April.
Among them ' will be Professor
Adolph Hat-neck and Dr. Robert Koch,
of Germany; M. Delcasse, late foreign
mlqjejer; Profetior Marcellln B. Oula
Edmund Roatand, Baron D'Eatour-
nhlles de Constant and August Rodan.
of France; Alma Tadema, Lord Hugh
Cecil, William H. Preece, Frederlo
Hardison, Molnerly Bell, William Hug
gins. and possibly James Bryce, of
England; Msasten Maaetens, M. Van
Karnedeck. director of the Temple of
Peace, of Holland; .Count Albert Ap-
ponyl. of Hungary.
And Pittsburg may be depended upon
to entertain them mpst royally.
Great fortunes are hard to estimate.
It Is now sold that 'Alfred Belt, tre-
qucntly spoken of as a near-bllllonalre,
really left only a paltry hundred roll-
lion dollara, which. In these days, is
nothing unusual. On the other hand,
it would seem that the estate of the
n
*
■ vr
ALFRED BEIT.
late Marshall Field waa under rather
than over-estimated. The value of the
property left by him In New York I*
appraised at 18,000.000. It is not Im
possible thst he was the richer man ot
i he two.
Newport has been thrown Into a flut
ter of excitement by the report thst
J. Nicholas Brown, the "110,000,000-
baby," has been threatened with ab
duction. The mother of the child Is
■rostrated today. An extra guard hu
Men placed over the lad. It Is de
clared thst a band of criminals from
New York are here after the million
aire baby.
Many New Yorker* will leem with
regret of the eerloue Illness dt Colonel
"Bill" Brown, politician, newspaper
man and “man-nbout-town.’’ Colonel
"Bill" wa* at one time Joint proprietor
of The Dally News, with the late Ben.
Wood, and represented hi* district In
the *tate senate. He has a wide circle
of acquaintances among public men.
Isldor Wormser Is the bad boy of
this village. He does things that wt
would spsnk our children for doing,
and It Is about time that we condemn
hint as a nuisance."
That la what T. C. Zinsser, the presi
dent of tho village of Hastlngs-on-
Hudson, said yesterday, when the
young New Yorker, who ts s banker
at No. 16 Broad street, hae a town
houee at No. it West Fifty-fourth
street and a country residence near
Hasting*, waa brought up before Judge
Tomkins on a charge of having ex
ceeded the automobile speed limit, sec
ond offense, and wee fined *60.
GEORGIANS IN GOTIIAM.
By Private Leased Wire.
New York, July 13.—Here sre some
of the visitors In New York today:
ATLANTA—W. B. Byck anil wife. H
. Friend. Jr.. J. Hargrave, Ml*» Kirk-
caldle, W. E. Neall and wife, W. Vance,
J. L. Boynton, P. M. Davie, C. U
Stovall C. J. Beaaden, J. W. Hlnrilfl*.
R. G. Hitt, W. P. McCord, W. O. Ml-
sell C. L. Moore.’ ' ,
AUGUSTA—C. D. Perkin* ami wife,
, A. Bonner, W. C. Welch. „
MACON—Mrs. L. Dempsey. Mrs. «•
W. Wahbury. _ T
SAVANNAH—H. Blumenthnl. P- 7-
Hassen. Jr.. M. Lehwald, W. B. Sim-
well.
THIS DATE IN HISTORY-
JULY 19.
1203—Fall of Constantinople t«
VeneUal crusaders.
1333—Edward III defeated the Scots at
battle of Halldon HIM. ,
1853—Lady Grey proclaimed queen «
England by earl of Arundel.
1573—Dr. John Calus. founder of came
College, Cambridge, died.
829—Quebec capitulated to the
lieh: 130 year* before It*
conquest by Wolfe. ,
1789—British sloop Liberty scuttled *n*
sunk by people of
1779—American force defeated Br
at battle of Paulus Hook
1312—United States brig Nau ue
lured by squadron of British frf*
1121—Ge'orge IV crowned king of Eng
land. ,, *t
1824—Iturblde, Mexican leader. eh«
Ptdillo. . -e If rltf»
1849—Greet Are In New } ork ’
30} buildings destroyed. ^
1884—Battle of Peach Tree < ref*.
1870-Napoleon III declared war
1882—Fun”ral of Mrs. Abraham Lines*
f888-L l8 p Prt R«vl!Ud.ed
1899—Secretary of War Alger
1905—Chinese declared boycott »
American good*