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rJIILADUPIIIA, THURSDAY, AHIIL 39, 191S.
An old fool Is merely a iottnp fool grown up.
In Pursuit of Naval Efficiency
Tins appointment of Captain W. S. Benson
to bo Chief of Naval Operations, with tho
rank of rear admiral, Is a happy one. Ho
has a record of conspicuous service. IIo Is
forward-IookhiK, keenly appreciative of prog
ress, ji man who refuses to stand still or to
permit dryrot In anything under his direc
tion. At sea and on land ho has given cvl
denco of superior abilities. He represents
naval cfflclency nnd should put an end to
much of tho discussion which has upset tho
naval establishment.
At a time when tho navy Is tho object of
sovcro criticism, duo to a Just or unjust lack
of confidence In the Secretary of tho Navy,
It Is of moro than ordinary Importance that
tho officer selected to tako charge of tho
establishment should command tho confi
dence and respect of tho service. This Cap
tain Benson docs to a remarkable degree.
In fact, his appointment should do much to
mitigate tho criticism heretofore directed
against tho Secretary.
Modernize the Constitution
PROGRESSIVE Pcnnsylvnulnns, who aro
persuaded that the Constitution should bo
rovlsed and modernized, will follow tho de
liberations of tho constitutional convention
now in session In Albany with deep Interest.
Some of tho ablest lawyers in tho nation aro
sitting as delegates there, and they aro giv
ing to tho subject tho serious attention that
It deserves. Tho document which they draw
up will merit tho careful study of lawmakers
in evcrjf State. It Is morally certain that it
will not resemble tho Oklahoma Constitu
tion In tho slightest particular. It Is moro
likely to bo as simple and direct as the Fed
eral Constitution, bocauso tho best thought
on the subject agrees that legislation should
be left to tho legislators and that tho funda
mental law should contain Httlo moro than a
grant of power with proper restrictions for
Its exorcise.
There Is no prospect for tho lmmocllato re
vision of tho Constitution of this Common
wealth, however much it may need It. But
revision must como within a few years. Pub
lic discussion in bar associations and politi
cal meetings cannot begin too soon, so that
When tho timo for action comes thero may bo
an intelligent and Informed public sentiment
behind propositions for Improvement.
The Accident of Fame
C.HUNTINGTON JACOBS, of Los An
geles, owes n debt of gratitude to Pro
fessor Kuno Meyer, of Berlin University,
for elevating him from tho Inconsplculty of
a Harvard undergraduate into an Interna
tional Issue.
Jacobs wroto a poem on tho war In a com
petition conducted by tho Harvard Advocato
and won tho prize, In tho opinion of two
members of tho faculty, who acted as Judges.
It was not a great poem, but a workmanllko
piece of verso that he produced, and It would
havo been forgotten if Professor Meyer had
not written from Berlin that ho could not
servo as nn exchange professor at an Institu
tion which would countenance tho publica
tion of such a "damnable poem" in a student
periodical. .
Now, of course, every ono wants to read
tho poem, and It lsbelng printed where It
would never havo appeared, and Jacobs has
awakened to find himself famous. If ha
keeps on writing verso ho may merit tho
distinction which has now como to him
accidentally.
In the meantlmo It may bo noted that Pres
ident Lowell has reminded Professor Meyer
that freedom of speech la allowed at Har
vard, even against tho protest of dis
tinguished citizens who wanted to muzzlo the
pro-German members of tho faculty.
Gaillard's Paradoxical Monument
CULEBRA cut, which carries tho Panama
Canal through tho backbone of the
Isthmus, Is no longer to bo known by the
prime of the divided rango of mountains, but
henceforth It Js Gaillard cut, named in honor
of tho engineer who fought and tore a chan
nel through It.
Colonel . Gaillard's monument, therefore,
does not lift itself Into the air, but bores its
way through tho hills. Nevertheless, It Is a
fitting memorial to a great achievement and
to Jta achiever, who gave hla life to tha
work.
Anti-Trust Fieht Crosses the Water
THERE is no rest for tho rich. Tho thorns
are no sooner taken from their couch In
ona part of the world than they appear in
another part.
JVheti tha Supreme Court dissolved tho
Standard Oil Company Into Its constituent
corporations, thereby Increasing the, market
value of Its shares, the long campaign that
ia,J been waged against It hero was ended.
And when the new banking; Jaw was passed
I-by Congress It was announce that the
PMny trust," the head of whleh was said
o be 3 Plerpont Morgan's banking house,
was destroyed, and the way was opened to
the lasher men to get what business they
thought uiey ought to hava
FMf several members of the British Par
,mt have begun to question the Govern-
fi about the war contracts awarded to
,. '- Morgan house, and tp fharge th.e Arnerl
ia bankers with making tap: much money
p with rfijJK to let outsiders participate
in iter business And an English company.
: tuLSK'og w profit by the trade which Ger-
' ti'.v feaj lea bemuse of the blockade, is at-
w.t!iij; tkie Standard Oil Com pawy en the
rprowBd tut it, ar A corporation once awl-
. i-sii iitt It, sot there Arse nuA secured
buslftess which Its competitors thought thy
ought to have. Tho company la charged with
attempting to monopolize tho oil business of
the world.
All this has a most familiar sound. But
It doca not'Scom to worry tho Standard Oil
Company In tho least, That corporation may
bo blessed with a skin of Indurated fibre Un
sensltlvo to such attacks, and the Morgans
may bo similarly equipped with Impervious
Integument. But tho managers of both aro
an aro that It Is not yet considered a crlmo
anywhere, save In tho United States, to do
as much business as possible or to reach out
for new business. The war may havo
changed tho popular view In Europe, but It
is not likely
Smash the Fullbacks Program
TT IS quite true that tho whimsical argil-
ments advanced by "Dave" Lano against
rapid transit nro selt-contradlctory and ab
surdly antl-progrcsslvo. Ho thinks that
convenience Is something to bo avoided
sedulously. But when ho talks about tho
achievement of rapid transit as "nothing
moro than stealing," ho Is thinking, perhaps1,
of somo former franchises which wero put
through In this city. Thero Is no stealing
In this deal, and there will be none, unless
through somo trickery or other tho pcoplo
nro deprived of tho improvement they so
urgently require.
There wero "Davo" Lanes In tho good old
days, and somo of them owned stago lines,
on which account they bitterly opposed tho
Introduction of railroads. They are dead,
but the country has survived and oven
prospered. Yet It Is Interesting to know that
thero Is Toryism left. It takes all kinds of
pcoplo to mako a city, and If thero wero no
obstinate fellows to stand In tho way "of
any and all progress not of financial benefit
to themselves tho fight would not bo halt so
gripping.
It Is well, however, that tho pcoplo of
Philadelphia should understand that their
project Is In peril. A group of Interested
men are gathering their cohorts together to
defeat tho loan. Thoy nro smnll In number,
but they hopo through the apathy and over
confldcnco of tho public to put ono over.
They hnvo an Idea that they can catch tho
people asleep. Instead, they have sounded
tho alarm. Unintentionally they nro Paul
Reveres shouting a warning to all citizens
to bo up and doing. Their card of inac
curacies, freely distributed, has convincod
citizens that a conspiracy is ufoot and
warned them to go to tho polls In grcit
numbers.
Thero aro not enough "Dave" Lanes In
this vicinity to stop rapid transit, which will
provo a Juggernaut for tho whole lot of
them. It Is a big thing, a compelling thing,
with body and a sweep to It, and all tho
intellectual Lilliputians hereabouts, combined
or uncombincd, cannot stop it. At every
turn so far thoy havo bocn checkmated, and
now thoy havo tho audacity to attempt a
coup at tho polls. Thoy nro In for as lino
a. trouncing as pullbacks ever got. So, at
least, tho auguries point.
Thero is nothing now that can prevent tho
success of tho loan except tho pcoplo them
selves, They can let It go by default and
forfeit their privileges. But will they? Not
unless they aro tho dumbest set of sheep
that ever gamboled in n slaughter pen; and
recent events havo given the Impression that
tho dumbness Is on the other side. As be
tween do-nothlnglsm of "Dave" Lane, whoso
pockets are heavy with Union Traction
stock, and tho constructive program of Di
rector Taylor, whoso lntorcst Is tho public's,
no citizen should havo any difficulty in mak
ing a choice.
But remember, Mr. Voter, that your
choico will amount to nothing unless It is
registered In tho ballot box.
No Peace for a Sultan in Europe
THE Sultan Is reported to bo suing for a
separate peace. 'He is not likely to get It.
Nothing could havo pleased Russia moro
than tho entry of tho Ottoman Emplro Into
tho conflict. Constantinople Is a prlzo worth
fighting for; worth, In Russian eyes, all tho
sacrifices In the Carpathians and tho bitter
harvest of death In Poland.
Either tho cause of tho Allies or Turkey
In Europe is lost. Tho Crescent will not con
tlnuo to fly abpvo tho Bosphorus unless tho
caglo flaps his wings permanently In Ant
werp. Thero Is peace for the Sultan only
In a surrender of his European territory.
Becauso tho saving of that la his primo rea
son for wanting peace, it seems that ho Js
in an lnextrlcablo dilemma. Sinco there
must bo a carnival of map-making, by all
means let It bo thorough.
A thousand corpses to gain a yard seems
to bo tho rulo In Europe.
One cannot escape the thought today that
there aro Dukes In America also.
The jitney Is so Invigorating It was In
evitable that a cocktail should bo named
after It,
Professor O'Bolger evidently thinks that
kindergarten methods are not necessary In a
university.
Even if tha General Assembly should ad
journ on any other day than Kay 13 It could
not escape the hoodoo.
The colleges In Oxford University aro fol
lowing tho example of tha King by barring
the use of alcoholic drinks.
It will be dlflicult for Barnes to prove that
Roosevelt Is any different sort of man from
what the country has long known him to be.
Perhaps a medical expert would be able to
decide whether the epldemlo of berl-berl on
the German cruiser at Newport News is
really what they say It Is or Just cold feet.
Prof, Brnst Haeokel, who Is SO years old,
does not think he will live long enough to
recover from his hate of tha British, and in
this respect he agrees with many younger
Germans, "
J ,rf ! L ft Mill II HH, I LL, J
"When Barnes, said that Governor Hughes
was planning to build a mahlno of his own
he proved that he did not know what kind
of a man Hughes was. But when he said
that the eueeeee of Hughes was bad for the
Barnes machine be proved that lie knew
what kind of a man Hughes was not.
ALLIES AT GATEWAY
OF CONSTANTINOPLE
Campaign of Anglo-French Land
nnd Naval Forces nt Dardanelles
Oilers Interesting Parallel to At
tack on Santiago.
By FRANK H. SIMONDS
FOR Americans thero must bo moro than
a suggestion of Shatter's campaign
against Santiago In tho new allied opera
tions against tho Dardanelles, it Is truo
that compared with tho later operation our
own seems wholly trivial. At least ten
times as mnny men as went to Cuba with
tho first Santiago expedition aro engaged
In tho Qallipoll operation. Sampson's flcot
was paltry compared with tho Anglo-French
squddronB, led by "Big Lizzie," as tho Qucon
Elizabeth Is familiarly named by tho Brit
ish tar.
Yet something of the problem is tho came.
Before Santiago Sampson wisely, as all ob
servers havo concluded, declined to risk his
ships In forcing tho entranco to Santiago
oven after Ccrvora'a fleet had bocn de
stroyed. From tho outset, once tho fleet was
discovered, ho appealed to tho army to clear
tho way by taking tho forts. After a
costly experiment with tho Farragut method
tho Anglo-French admirals havo followed
tho Sampson precedent.
In tho Cuban operation wo began by seiz
ing Quantanamo as a naval base. Tho al
lied occupation of Enos, on tho other sldo
of tho Gulf of Saros, facing tho Galllpoll
peninsula, Is a good parallel. At Slbonoy
nnd Daiquiri tho American troops wero
landed In open roadsteads on a shore com
manded by abrupt hills. Tho British land
ing places aro not dissimilar, although thero
is lacking tho Juragua Iron Company pier,
so useful In 1808, and tho mlnlaturo in
dentations on tho Galllpoll shoro nro far
less protected than was Siboney.
Fleet and Army in Touch
But hero the parallel with 1308 stops. Tho
British, having landed at Kaba-Tope, nro
but flvo miles from their objcctlvo and less
than a mllo from n road loading down to
tho Dardanelles opposlto Nngara. They aro
thus assured of tho support of their war
ehlps every foot of tho way, while tho
Americans nt San Juan wero without such
aid. Thero is lacking, too, tho Junglo
through which Roosevelt led his regiment
to tho ambuhh of Las Guaslmos.
Tho dominating height of tho Galllpoll
peninsula, a rough plateau somo 1100 feet
high, rises from tho water and attains it3
summit less than four miles from tho Brit
ish landing plnco and commands tho road
along which tho British must ndvancc. It
might be compared to tho El Cancy posi
tion in its relation to the British flank.
The disadvantage of the Turkish position
Is found In tho fact that tho defenses wero
organized to repulso a licet coming up tho
straits. Thero nro therefore no permanent
works on tho shores of tho Gulf of Saros,
and tho forts Ho low along tho straits and
aro commanded by tho hills behind them,
over which tho British must advance If
they aro to succeed. Thanks to tho aero
plane, too, tho forts can bo bombarded by
Indirect flro from tho Gulf of Saros, a3 well
as directly by tho flcot at tho entranco of
tho straits.
Glvon good wcathor, then, tho British ad
vanco will bo covered during Its entire
courso by tho guns of tho fleet, while tho
Turks will havo to rely on field works and
field artillery. On tho other hand, numbers
and position rest with tho Turks, whoso
German officers havo probably worked as
effectively hero ns upon tho forts.
Land Forces' Mission
Tho mission of tho army 13 to occupy forts
nnd batteries, once they havo been tem
porarily reduced by the guns of tho fleet;
prevent tho reorganization of theso fortifi
cations, which follows tho withdrawal of
tho fleet; destroy tho hlddon batteries, tho
torpedo tubes mounted on tho shores;
methodically completo what tho artillery of
tho fleet has begun.
Tho occupation of tho Galllpoll peninsula,
with the capturo or reduction of tho forts
on It, will not removo all Turkish obstacles.
There are still tho stronger forts on tho
Asiatic side, but onco theso aro exposed to
artillery flro from tho Galllpoll shoro and
from tho fleet their ovacuatlon 13 assured.
Tho Frer.ih troops landed nt Kum Kalch,
tho British at Seddul Bahr, that Is on tho
capes nt tho entranco of tho straits, nre
probably moro garrison parties, intended to
assuro tho safety of tho ships in tho lower
Btralt from riflo and field artillery flro, That
tho French will mako any considerable ad
vance, that thero will be a new conflict
on tho site of Troy, seems unlikely, for
hero tho Turks havo amplo room to em
ploy their superior numbers.
On tho other hand, tho Galllpoll penin
sula supplies no such opportunity. It Is
barely a dozen miles wldo at tho broadest
point, nnd nt Bulalr, where it Joins tho
mainland, hardly three. Across a level plain
here, under flro of tho fieot, runs tho only
highway connecting tho Turks with their
base. Tho Bulalr isthmus is rather like tho
neck of tho bottlo-shapcd Galllpoll penin
sula. Could tho Allies occupy It tho Turks
would have to depend upon Bhlps for sup
plies, reinforcements and ammunition.
So complete was tho first failure of the
Allies that there will be little expectation
PLAYING AT WORDS AND WITS
0!.
F THE Beggar's Opera Walpola wrote that
made Gay rich and Rich gay. This pun
made Its first appearance in cold type.
Alexander Popo thought so poorly of puna
that he declared tha pun extempore to be the
only respectable kind. A pun Is too trifling and
too easy to make, he said, to be worth a place
in literature, and when he was asked by one
tt tho company to whom he made the remark
to prove his contention na did not hesitate.
Responding to the 'challenge, "Mako one on
keelhauling," he replied:
"That is indeed putting a man under a hard
ship." Tom Hood and Theodore Hook were both
famous punitflrs. They once made Ji wager as
to who could make the beat pun offhand.
Charles Mathews was to be the judge, and the
loser was to pay for supper for the trio. The
agreement was made as they were walking
together along a London street. A signboard
advertising baer attracted their attention by
ito spelling, "Bear Sold Here,"
"Oho'." cried Hook. "I suppose that bear Is
hl own bruin!"
"Good!" said Mathews, and, turning to Hood,
he added, "you'll have hard work to beat that."
"I dare say he'll do It, though." said Hook,
"far, you know, he carries mare than two faces
undtr or heod. Don't you. Two?"
At that moment, turning a sharp corner, they
9n.A linirt n emnll 1,mhf pAtlWn .YlAllftA Htfimlfn?
p i'y p .... j --. ... w ...m...,
"OH,
elHw
of any prompt success now. Santiago tool:
noveral weeks. Sebastopol, which will como
to tho European mind ns Santiago to tho
American, took months. Only tho similar
operations of tho French before Algiers In
1830 wero promptly successful. Vet tho po
litical circumstances nro such that tho Al
lies aro now bound to completo what thoy
have undertaken, cost what It may.
Sofia, Athens, Bucharest and Romo will
watch tho present operation with greatest
attention. Bosldo it tho second battlo of
Yprcs Is a minor Incident. Upon Its lssuo
hangs tho fato of Turkey, tho decision of
Bulgaria and Greece, the final resolve of
Ttaly nnd Rumania. Allied defeat hero
would bo a moral disaster of almost Incal
culable magnitude. But allied victory
would bo hardly less far-reaching In its
consequence.
Flvo hundred and six years ago tho Turk
entered Europe at tho prcclso point whero
his fato Is now being decided. Alexander
and Xerxes crossed whero tho forts of Nn
gara sweep tho throat of tho channel.
Achilles and Hector fought within range of
tho French "7Cs" at Kum Kalch. In tho
wholo progress of the great war thero has
been no moro dramatic incident.
BE AN AMERICAN
from tlio Illinois Stnto Journal.
Half tho world im busy fighting tho other half
Uatrot nnd mnllco toward ono another Is
Rnreadlng through Huropo ns poison spreads
through tho human eytom blasting, withering,
destroying
Tho United States hns kept out of troublo so
far. Tfut millions of this country's Inhabitants
have kinsmen across tho sea fathers, mothers,
sisters, hrothers, or moro distant relatives.
And when ono has kinsmen, even distant kins
men, killing or bring killed In tho trenches, it Is
hard to control tho feelings, to bo neutral to
refrain from feeling bitter toward jour neigh
bor hero whoso kinsmen, perhars, aro part of
tho foes our kinsmen nro fighting.
This Is the time then to bo nn American first.
Nail Old Glory to tho mnst nnd then stand by
the flng. You aro a citizen of tho United Stales.
AVe do not want to mcddlo in this affair in Bu
rope except to bring about pcaco If possible!
Feel sorrow and pain that the petty 111 feeling
of crowned puppets should causo the tlnughtor
of millions of mon some, perhaps, kinsmen of
N ours but when hatred begins to steal into
your heart and tho blood-red hazo of the battle
field rises beforo your eyes
Stop and remember that:
You are an American first, last and all tho
time.
"TIPPERARY" AND BREATHING ,
Tho "theory of natural respiration" ac
counts for tho populnrlty of "It's a Long,
Long Way to Tippcrary," tho matching song
of tho British army, according to Thomas Hen
derson, an English music teacher. Recontly,
speaking at University College, Nottingham,
Mr. HcndcrBon is reported ns follows In Tho
Hospital;
Judging from their works, Handel and
Beethoven respired moro slowly than Men
delssohn. Most pcoplo breathe nbout 10 times J
a. minuic, imii no saw in inai reason wny, quito
apart from tho melody, tho most popular muslo
was that In which tho rhythm was oven and
tho accent always camo on the bent. Tho
song, "It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary,"
wns a case In point. It had been asked why It
should bo moro popular than Cigar's patriotic
song, "Land of Hopo and Glory." Tho reason
was that "Tipperary" was In agreement with
tho theory of natural respiration, while Elgar's
song was not.
THE IMPORTANCE OF MANNERS
Manners aro of moro Importance than lavs.
Upon them, In a great measure, the laws de
pend. Tho law touches us but hero and there,
nnd now and then. Manners aro what vex
or soothe, corrupt or purify, exalt or debase,
barbarize or retina us, by a, constant, stendy,
uniform, insenslbla operation, like that of the
air wo breathe In. They give their whole form
and color to our lives. According to their qual
ity, they aid morals; they Bupply them or they
totally destroy them. Edmund Burke,
In the midat of a wretched little yard of well
trampled grass. A huge board, on which had
been painted "Beware the Dog!" confronted
them, '
Hood looked about cautiously, but saw no
canine guardian of the grassplot. Picking up
a fragment of broken brick, he scribbled be
neath the warning this query;
"Ware be the Dog?"
Mathews was stumped, and the supper which
followed was a Dutch treat
Hook once bragged that he could make a pun
on any subject, v
"Well, then," said a friend, "make one on
the King."
The wit replied;
"The King Is no subject."
Douglas Jerrold was another famous punster.
A fellow clubman once challenged him.!
"Can you make a pun on the signs of the
zodiac?"
Jerrold did It.
"By Cemn, I canl" he said.
The author of "Beslae the Bonnie BrJr
Bush" was clever at playing op word. In a
company of literary man l fame poetor Wa
eona turn to ehow hU facility h a rivalry of
punning.
"Come, now, Watson," said Hall Cajne. "We
are all waiting." '
"Quite so," flashed back the other, "but please
,don't be In such a- hurryCaloe,
IF I WERE ONLY JOSHUA!"
&Lj&,
COLE'S GOOD FIGHT FOR CHICAGO
Six Men, 20 Years Ago, Founded the Municipal Voters' League,
Which Has Won a Great Victory Against Corrupt Poli
tics Their Weapon Was Publicity, That's All.
By special arrangement with tho Now YorkEvenlng- Tost.)
TBSSONS moro than local Ho plain upon
J-J tho faco of tho record of tho Municipal
Voters' League of Chicago, which last night
celebrated tho 20th anniversary of Its found
ing. It Is virtually unique In Its character,
In its fidelity to purposo and In Us achieve
ment, which Is summed up In. tho phraso
now current In Chicago, "Tho city has tho
best Board of Aldermen In twenty years."
Look whero you. will, you will scarcely find
nnothcr city In which a small group of public-spirited
citizens, volunteers nil, havo dono
a work of this kind without hopo of personal
roward or preferment, and at tho end of two
decades havo so much to show for It. Tho
history of tho organization is full of hopo
for American municipal reform.
When tho Municipal Voters' League was
founded Chicago was in a bad way. Its city
government, generally speaking, was In tho
hands of a gang of politicians of tho worst
type, nnd had shuttled between ono so-called
party organization and nnothcr, without ob
vious reason why plain citizens should caro
a rap which of them might bo In control.
Public streets, public utilities, public affairs
In general, wero tho sport of corrupt poli
ticians nnd tho corrupt capitalists who
worked hand-ln-glovo with them. Municipal
elections wero n farco nnd public Interest In
them at a minimum,
Physical Violento Threatened
It was In such a situation that a baro
half dozen of earnest men, sick of such a
plight of their community business, got to
gether for conference, with tho result that
tho leaguo was organized. Under tho leader
ship of a comparatively unknown, not to
say obscure, business man, Georgo E. Cole,
It went to work upon tho job. Tho city of
Chicago never enn bo sufficiently grateful to
that Httlo, solid fighter, Colo, for tho work
ho did, desplto sneers, social ostracism,
threats of business ruin, and oven of physi
cal violence, and nil tho other obstacles and
menaces that besot him; or to tho mon who
stood behind and bcsldo him during thoso
years when It meant actual personal danger
to do so. -,
To tho outside world tho result of tho re
cent city election was a victory of tho Be
publlcans, a proof of this, that or tho other
thing nbout woman suffrago, or what elso
you plcaso. To thoso who havo known Chi
cago during tho last 20 years, theso things,
important enough In their way, aro of loss
real consequenco and significance than tho
fact that tho work of tho Municipal Voters'
League, which went on calmly and steadily
through nil the uproar, brought again Its duo
roward In "tho best City Council In 20
years." Let tho Mayor bo who or what ho
may, Chicago is really governed by Its Board
of Aldermen. -
Aldermen's Records Exposed
How wub It dono? Tho process was so
slmplo ns to bo almost laughablo; so simple
and so easy that It can bo duplicated In any
other American community any community
that has tho right sort of bravo and un
selfish men to put It Into operation. Just
publicity that is nil. Each year for 20 years
this organization has fearlessly and ruth
lessly taken stock of the candidates for tho
Board of Aldermen, flne-combed the record
of each and told the people, without regard
to party affiliation or other extraneous con
siderations, what It discovered. National
Issues wore Ignored ns If thoy had not been.
Tho one question was, What sort of Alder
man will this man make for your ward and
for the city of Chicago? He might be a
Prohibitionist, a Socialist, a. Democrat, a Bef
publican, white, black or brown ;no matter
that was entirely beside the point, "Was he
a reasonably clean and honest man, likely to
devote himself with Integrity and Intelli
gence to the business of the city? The facts
Rearing on this question, so far as they could
be learned by diligent Inquiry, were set bo
fore tho people, and the people did tho rest.
Slowly at first, but with generally accelerat
ing force, with now and then a setback, con
ditions Improved. The people learned to re
pose great cohfldence in the reports of the
league; the political machines learned to fear
and to hate it, and to make their nomina
tions with a wholesome dread of the league's
recommendations,
Stimulus for Other Cities
Tho work has been absolutely a volunteer
work, spontaneous In orltln and tributary
to the Interests of no national party, no class
or clique, no politico-business Interest. It
has held, strictly to Its purpose, refusing all
side Issues, all collateral temptations. The
city of Chicago as a great business enter
prise, deserving the best of its citizens and
demanding a high degree of capacity and
honesty In its aldermanlo directorate to
that subject tho league dovoted Its efforts
exclusively. It hna not wearied In all these
years. Whereas most such enterprises flaBh
for a timo and then dlo, out of discourage
ment nnd moral fntlguo or Internal discord,
this ono has never flagged 'in Its grim and
single-hearted dovotlon to tho welfaro of the
elty. Year after year It has dono Its un
plcturesquo work of investigation, mado its
report, and then subsided Into tho back
ground for another twelvemonth. Its leaders
havo asked nothing for themselves. So far
as wo recall, not ono man actlvo in tho work
of tho league has ever stood for office or
othcrwlso exhibited the slightest disposition
to capitalize for himself tho public confi
dence In tho work of tho league. Never has
a taint of selfishness or ulterior purposo been
oven seriously alleged.
One thing most significant and hopeful Is
tho change In tho stnndnrd of tho league for
tho approval of candidates. AVhcrcas In the
early days tho main stress was laid nega
tively upon mere personal honesty candi
dates must not bo thieves Increasingly dur
ing succeeding ycartr tho test of capacity has
been emphasized; Chicago now demands that
her Aldermen shnll bo not only honest but
able. For 20 years, unpaid, often unappre
ciated, lndomltablo In purpose, Inflexible In
honesty, disinterested In method nnd man
ner, this Httlo group of mon has stood on
tho firing lino against corruption, lnofncienoy
nnd corpornto selfishness. It is a noblo roc
ord, of which Chicago may well bo proud,
nnd in which other communities might well
find needed stimulus nnd example.
GANDER AND GOOSE
To the ndltor of the Evenina Ledger:
Sir Calling nttention to tho nrticlo written by
Miss Ellen Adnlr In tho Saturday edition of tho
Evenino LnDoun, in which she criticises women,
for sensitiveness regarding age, and contrasts
therewith tho willingness of mon not only to
acknowledge tho full number of their years, but,
ns sho nssorts, ovon to add to them. In regard
to this last remark, Miss Adair may find callow
youths guilty of such recklessness, but rarely
men whoso locks nro tinged with tho rime of
ago or uhoso bald pates glisten brilliantly
with tho setting sun. As for her previous as
sertions, Miss Adair should remember that de
spite tho proverb, what is sauce for the gander
Is not sauce for tho goose. Increasing years
nro naturally less of a ljugaboo to the mascu
lino gender, becauso no reproach seems to be
attached to them, but women even their own
sex Js responsible for much of tho hestltancy
felt by them In acknowledging tho flight of
time, while men aro more than pleased to
extend the "hall fellow well met glad hand"-
to thoso old enough to be their fathers and
grandfathers.
Few men, too, seem to object very strenu
ouely to their thinning "thatch" or even to
tho absence of It almost entirely and, for tha
matter of that, neither doe3 any one else, but
woman holds fast to her "crowning glory" with
tho tenacity of despair, and views with unspeak
able regret Its fading sbcen and falling threads
of gold. On tha contrary, tho bald-headed man
waxes his little "eyebrow" mustache with lov
ing care, dons, mayhap, a bright red tie, a suit
of the latest cut, and hies himself out to give
the girls a ticat no matter what his age, and
thinks no less of himself when, bowing gallantly
beforo some miss of 18, ho discloses a bare and
shining "poll" to her youthful eyes. But a
bald-headed woman ye godsl
Where, for Instance, would you find a woman,
old or young, who would alt herself own to b
lathered and shampooed ad libitum direct,!?
In tho gaze of the "madding crowd"? And
yet, strange as It has always seemed to me, one
rarely or never sees a barber shop with a cur
tain screening Its male occupants from the vul
gar gaze. Apparently blissfully unconscious,
they proceed to make themselves comfortable
w.hlla the tonsorlal artists perform upon them
all the mysteries of the toilet. Is It Indiffer
ence or conceit which makes them so willing
to display themselves? But no one can de
clare them pleasing objects at such a time.
And Isn't it true If women did such things ins
police would have to be called upon to disperse
the mob of men from before the window?
I only give these few Instances to show that
on the question of age, or any other point, ex
cept intellectually, that to compare the eJ
absurd and unfair, A MERE WOMAN.
Stonelelgh Court. April 28,
"IT WAS' THE EARLY SPRING"
(Translated from tho JtUMlan of A. K. Tolitoy.)
It was the early, early spring,
The grass was young; aoove no ptrearo
A sultry air was quivering;
Of green the forest did but dream.
The Bhepherd pipes, with tuning soft,
Had but begun their tale to tell;
The slender fern had not yet doffed
Its flee,cy coll in woodland dell.
It was the early, early spring.
Still fine and thin tha birchen shade;
I caught the smile tnat, hovering,
At last beneath thine eyelids played!
Thy smile It said my love had won
That smile tblne eyelids strove to velll
O life! O budding wood! O sun!
O youth, O hope, that could not fa!
With tears my eyes were glistening,
So tender shone thy lovely face;
It was, the early, early spring.
Faint birchen shade all rpund the place.
This was the morning of our da,
O Joy! O tears! So strangely blent!
O life! O wood! Q sunny ray!
And O the birch tree's thrtlUnf scent'
T-EdlUi it, aonwj, la HiV 5Torie Sua,