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Commentaries On The Week’s Netos The Graves-Bryan Episode. One of the talked-about incidents of the week was the speech made by Col. J. T. Graves, editor of the Atlanta Georgian, at the Chattanooga birthday banquet to Hon. William Jennings Bryan. Col. Graves gravely proposed that Mr. Bryan should, in the next national Democratic convention, arise and nominate Theodore Roosevelt for a third term in the presidential office. The banqueters were amazed, but Mr. Bryan was amused. Col. Graves was serious, but on second thought he will probably be glad to escape from the episode by the joke route. As. Mr. Bryan explains, he is com mitted to the idea that no man should hold the presidency for more than one term and, besides, President Roose velt is not democratic more than half his time and what the nation needs is a president who will be democratic all his time! The Peace Conference. The Peace Conference in New York this week brought together a great many notable men who have set their minds and hearts to work to bring about tne establishment of a perma nent peace tribunal at The Hague and a program between nations that will substitute arbitration for wars. The logic and humanitarianism of the scheme are beyond criticism and the advancement the world is making in the direction of arbitration of in ternational issue is very marked and gratifying. The question growing out of the Russo-Japanese treaty at Portsmouth, is a plain one —why not arbitrate be fore the war and its horrors rath er than after them? The true militant spirit of civilization favors the ante bellum plan. LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE “FIGHTING BILLY. Editors Weekly Jeffersonian: I have not joined the Farmers’ Union yet, but I intend to join it as soon as it is organized near enough to me for me to become an attentive, visiting member. I note that Lon Liv ingston, Fighting Billy Northen and Harvie Jordan are not members, and that is encouraging. Fighting Billy was elected governor of Georgia by the Alliance, and then deserted them; Lon and his yard stick was elected to congress by the Alliance, and he, too, deserted, and Harvie has proven that he is a better friend to Wall street speculators than he is to the south ern farmers. No Hoadlyite is a friend to the southern farmer. If Harvie in tended to work for the good of the farmers, why did he get rid of Tom Watson, who every farmer knows is straight goods? A leader cannot be a true friend to organized farmers and at the same time hold a winning hand with organized speculators. And when you find two organizations in the field, both claiming that they are working solely for the good of the people or farmers, the way to designate between the two is to watch which papers en dorse them, and choose accordingly. The last campaign in Georgia showed The Thaw Case Verdict. Although the Thaw jury disagreed and was discharged, it nevertheless found a verdict which the general public understands and, in the main, will approve. A very sane and cosmopolite jury refused to consider “the unwritten law” in the case of Thaw and a major ity of them refused to acquit him on the ground of insanity, though that ve’dict would have sent him to an insane asylum. The truth of the case is found in the revelations from the jury room and is that Thaw was sane enough at the time he killed White to know whom he was killing and for what rea son, and that reason which he pre sented to the jury was not an excuse for murder that satisfied it he should go free. Another trial of Thaw should be shorter and the verdict quickly reached, either for or againsi; him. The Associated Press Trust. A bill was introduced into the Ten nessee legislature to make such news associations as “The Associated Press” common carriers. That means that such associations shall not be allow ed to select and combine newspapers for the exclusive use of news items, gathered and transmitted over tele graph and telephone lines within the state, and such associations as re fuse to purvey to all newspapers alike are to be associations in restraint of trade and prohibitable. There is no question of the monopoly features of The Associated Press service and that they restrain practically the freedom of the press in the matter of trade in news. But whether a mutual associa tion can be such an unlawful combi nation is an unsettled constitutional conundrum. every person who watched which were the subsidized ring organs. Os course, they tell us “You should organ ize, but keep your organizations out of politics, because that is what ruined the Alliance.” I say it was not going into politics that disrupted the Alli ance; but it was taking cheap one gallus politicians into the order that hurt. Go into politics, yes; but keep cheap, corrupt politicians from joining the union. Tom Watson was also elected to congress by the Alliance vote, and he stuck to the men who elected him. Hence, the corrupt methods that were used to defeat him in his other races, and yet Mr. Watson did more for the American people, the ruralist, the farmers, the men who elected him, than all the rule or ruin congressmen combined. I remember before we had rural delivery I traveled twelve miles a week, or sixteen hundred a year, after my mail, or I traveled enough to break, plant and plow fifteen acres in cotton, if I only plowed the cotton three times. And then I could not af ford to take a daily paper, now 1 take two, and I am not the only man that has been benefited by rural delivery. In my opinion rural delivery helps more people than all the Carnegie li braries and Rockefeller donations com- WATSON’S WLBRJI The Georgia Railroad Case. Mr. Jackson, an Ohio railway inspec tor, selected by the Georgia Railroad Commission to inspect the line and equipment of the Georgia Railroad, has made his report in which he declares the road to be in as good condition as the average of railroads in the country at large. Hon. Bowdre Phin izy, who appealed for the inspection, declares Mr. Jackson’s work to have been inexpert, superficial and a “white wash” proceeding. It is certainly not a satisfactory report to the general pat rons of the road and it is up to the railroad commission to reject the as sailed report and satisfy itself as to the true status of the road. Other wise it may be necessary to have a legislative committee do the work and that might be embarrassing for both the road and the commission. A Very Dry Decision. The Louisville and Nashville Rail road Company, through one of its at torneys, Hon. John E. Dußose, an nounces that it will respect the laws of all communities on its lines that vote for the prohibition of the liquor traffic. It has decided to notify its agents and servants not to transport intox icating liquors of any kind or in any quantity into prohibitory territory, no matter whether the liquors are shipped from a point within the state, or from some other state. This decision is one that every rail road company can afford to make with out loss of revenue. The money sent out for whiskey would, if sent for clothing, groceries, furniture, etc., pro duce a larger volume of more profita ble freights. The L. & N. is a wise bird to stand on this decision. bined. I want to see the people own and control the railroads, same as they do the mail service, waterways and public roads. The time is coming, and I want to see it, when men who are raised here among us, and are serving the money power in another section, against the interest of their own section and kin dred, will have little or no following, and no person will respect or confide in them, and the subsidized papers that live and thrive here among us will have to look elsewhere for read ers. Certain papers I could name that are printed in Georgia are failing badly, and must fail 01 improve. What we want to do is to educate our people not to bite at everything that is thrown before them. Some papers yell pessimist every time a person com plains, no matter what the causes are. On January 11 I ordered some plow fixtures. They were shipped from the factory at Springfield, Mo., consigned to J. B. Howard, Adrian, Ga., now more than two months since, and they have not come to hand yet, while I have been out of the use of my money and the implements both. And some sweet potatoes were shipped to the same address from Hawkinsville, Ga., a distance of sixty-three miles, six days since, and they, too, have not Roosevelt and Tyler Too! The suggestion that Roosevelt should appoint the negro, Tyler, to some fat federal office in Cincinnati, as a come-back at Foraker, was vigor ously approved by many southern democratic newspapers. But Roose velt was afraid of Ohio and instead of appointing Tyler to an office out there, he brought the coon to Wash ington and has made him an auditor in a government office where he is to boss over twenty-five women clerks and most of them are southern women who, of necessity, have secured those clerical positions. It is now up to the southern dem ocratic newspapers to comment some more on Tyler’s eligibility and Roose velt’s negrophilism. We trust Col. Graves will be among the first to tell us how this last trans action of Roosevelt entitles him to our support for another term as pres ident? A Notable Anniversary. The 24th of this month is the 203rd anniversary of the appearance of the first American newspaper, called “The News-Letter,” printed in Boston. It contained largely local gossip, nation al notes that were months’ old and its news from Europe was six weeks old when it reached the public eye. If the old printer who set up and pull ed off the first American “yellow journal” could see the making of a modern newspaper of today, he would probably break his breeching back ing away, while he exclaimed: "Great Jehoshaphat, what people and what a time!” What railway freight extortion has Roosevelt yet reformed and lowered? been heard from by the agent at Adrian or myself, either. Now, some would likely tell me to take an opti mistic view of all such gross neg lect of duty or contract. But, unfor tunately, I’m not built that way. I used to think that a negro gave less unreliable labor for the money he re ceived than anything else. But for a long time time I have been changed, and I now think the railroads steer farther from their contract with the people than anything else, and are most unreliable. Call me pessimist, if you will, but my voice will be raised as long as I live against such unjust and one sided methods. I have a hand of welcome for all who endorse equal rights to all, and a kick for all who stand for class privileges. J. B. HOWARD. AT LEAST 1,000 YEARS. Editors Weekly Jeffersonian: How long do you think the south can hold the monopoly of the cotton supply of the world? JOHN C. WILLIAMS. Jackson, Miss. SHAKESPEARE UP TO DATE. Some are born liars, some achieve the art of lying, and some confer with Roosevelt.