The Scranton tribune. (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, April 01, 1896, Page 9, Image 9

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    THE SCBAUTOX TRIBUNE WEDNESDAY MOBSTING, APRIL 1, 1896.
THE ISSUE CLEARLY DRAWN
y.,v r . . ,-!
A:Promtieot Democrat Tells Vlty He
Left His Party.
COULDN'T STAND ITS BUNGLING
Speech te Which Ea-.Mayor vas. of
Tarra Haate. lad-, Declared Hla la-
tentloa of Co-operating with the
' gepabllcaa Paru Ueraaftar.
The Democratic party from avery
tump In the land, loud and long pro
claimed, exclaimed and declaimed
against the Republican methoda of
finance. Give us control of -the govern
ment. It aald, and we will cure the
financial Ills brought upon the people
by the Republican party. In 1892 the
people, believing this true, turned the
government completely over to the
Democratic party. Myself, together
with thousands of others, had misgiv
ings on this question, as well as on that
other and greater question, the tariff,
yet we maintained our party relations.
How has this promise been kept? What
miserable doctors of finance has the
Democratic party produced! Their
remedies have only aggravated the evil,
as they chose to call It. Their course
brought no relief they floundered,
floundered like a ship without a rudder.
Incapacity and want of ability on the
part 'of the '.Democratic party on the
financial question have been made so
apparent that no argument Is needed
to, establish the fact hopelessly at sea.
as we were under the Democratic party
on this same question in 1860-61, when
Walker's free trade theory had driven
the country almost to ruin and Mr. Hu
chanan was forced to do what the Wil
son free trade bill has forced Mr. Cleve
land to do borrow money to pay the
ordinary running expenses of the gov
ernment. The mismanagement of our
affairs by Walker and Buchanan in I860
had so prostrated the country and the
government that it was compelled to
borrow money at 1- per cent.
ADMINISTRATION ARRAIGNED.
Falling to legislate so that the reve
nues of the government might meet its
ordinary expenses, the present admin
istration has yet left the power to bor
row money to pay the running expenses
of the government by the issuing of
bonds in time of peace. And how have
these bonds been Issued? Mr. Cleve
land sold bonds that had thirty years
to run through a syndicate at $10"',
while bonds of the government that had
only ten years to run were selling In
the markets of the world at $1.16. Mr.
Cleveland undertook to repeat himself
by the sale of more bonds. The people
throughout the country had clamored
loud and long that public loans should
be made that is, that the people should
be offered these bonds that they might
take them and keep them at home. The
administration paid no attention to
their demands. Mr. Cleveland's ar
rangements with the syndicate in New
York were upset by a resolution Intro
duced In the senate of the United States
by Senator Klklns, by directing the sec
retary of the treasury to advertise a
public loan, and for that $100,000,000 of
Kian nearly (600,000,000 were subscribed,
and these bonds, if I remember correct
'.y, were sold at about $1.11. Mr. Cleve
.and's syndicate lost 6 per cent, on this
Investment which It did not get on ac
count of Senator Klklns' resolution.
Why did not some Democratic senator
offer a resolution like Senator Elkins
did?
THE PARAMOUNT ISSUE.
I now come to the last and greatest
question of all. and one upon which
the prosperity of our country rests.
The question Is as old as our govern
ment, was with us at the formation of
,'tur constitution, and has been with us
ever. since, and is again with us In the
destruction, ruin and misery brought
upon the country by the so-called leg
islation of the Democratic party under
the Wilson bill. Tariff, protection or
Tree trade this Is the great, the para
mount, the important question that is
before the country in the coming cam
paign. Taxation is the one nearest and
of most Interest of all questions to the
people. To raise tne money necessary
to carry on the government Is a duty
alt will admit. How to do this, that the
burden may fall equally and lightly
on all classes, is the question. How to
ao tnis ana at tne same time protect our
labor, our Industries and our people of
every class is the question for the
statesman and the legislator. Behind
us Is more than a century of experience
in tne levy ana collection of the neces
sary taxation. Practice, experience
ana tneory we nave naa in abundance.
At the outset you will And that the
theological, geological and aftentlmes
the Illogical whlte-cravated college
professors, enforced by English-loving
mugwumps, who are In favor of free
trade, with no practical experience in
this pushing, hustling, hard-lined
business world, these people step for
ward with theory, and the application
61 the theory of only one of the class
mentioned has brought our government
to the verge of financial ruin and bank
ruptcy and our business Interests, east,
west, north and south to stagnation,
with utter ruin, staring us In the face,
I WILSON, LAW A CRIME. -
greatest crime In the nineteenth
eehtury against the business industries
of pur country was the passage of the
Wilson bill. The destruction of the
raltes of property, the destruction of
iheUnislness Interests of the oountry,
tne Treat army of unemployed, the re
auction In the wages of labor are all
the tesult of that law. The present
hard ttlmes commencing In 1893, and
yet ukm us, were caused by this law,
lust anthe history of the country shows
the dnkdful panics of 1819, 1837 and 1857
were caused by similar Democratic free
traae legislation on the tariff Question.
On thi other hand, and In opposition
to the fleas of the modem tariff re
former a embraced In the Wilson bill.
we have the words, acts and deeds of
Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton,
Jackson, ladlson, Clay, Webster, Lln
soln, BlalU, Grant, McKlnley and a
Host or othir illustrious men. The leg
islation of tie country, when following
. the advice Vnd lines of nollcv marked
ut by thlsVlass of men, has always
oruugm prosperity, wnen it has fol
lowed out tl lines of the Wilson bill
.ruin and disaster have been the result.
' The pathwdr of the Wilson bill has
oeen strewn tlth suicides of ex-congressmen,
nAnufacturers, bankers,
business men thd laboring people. The
recora maae wt should forever damn
politically Its author and the party that
passed and sunlorted It.
For thirty yeas this country lived
under the tariff legislation of the Re
publican party, and these thirty years
aere filled with wen prosperity as no
other government; on earth has had.
ft la true that li that time we had
both sorrow and trouble, but It was
Wen sorrow and trojble as war brines.
and the legislation ,t the Republican
party nulled us thruiirh the war. and
She inflation of the Currency the war
orougni ami put us n a firm found
tlon In 1M79. Grover Cleveland had one
, ierm of office in these thirty years. 1884
I88X, when his first fee trade theory
tdvorated during his administration re
tultsd in the electlonVof the gallant
oidier and statesman, Benjamin Har
rison, as president or thdUnlted States,
. THE PUBLIC DEBT,
in the twelve years frota 1880 to 1892,
hen drover Cleveland ws elected for
:ne second time, the expenses of the
rovernment were ail paluA and 11,200,
00,000 of the Interest bear debt was
jald.. When the .war close! the public
eoi or i no country was ai
out 12,800,
"".WW, wnen president Cli
tiected In 1812. under Rani
Ireland was
Mlcan leg-
krlf hum.
slatloit on the flnanolal and
.ions, (which had been, en ft t4 un tn
:he end of hi first term,) r nearly
:hlrtV years), this Irttar 1 Iu..Im
ft
or reason auoa i, isiatlun,
had been reduced to less than $1,000.-
OuO.000 when he went out of office at the
close of his first term. One Democratic
president In four years of this period
of thirty years has Increased the public
debt $110.000.000 for each year be has
been president
To the people Democracy under Mr,
Cleveland has been a very expensive
institution. Under Mr. Cleveland s last
term, and the Democratic legislation on
the tariff, the Wilson bill, what has
happened ' In comparison with the
twelve years, or any term of four years
of the twelve, that preceded 1892? Dur
Ing the present administration of Mr.
Cleveland the government interest
bearing debt has been Increased $:S0.
000,000. The ordinary debt of the gov
ernment has been Increased about $140.
000,000, making the legacy that he will
turn over to the Republican president
who succeeds hint an Increase tn the
debt of the country during his term of
about $400,000,000, and not a dollar of
reduction made on the Interest bearing
debt of the nation. What a record!
What incompetency!
November. 189. will complete the so
lution of our affairs, which started In
November, 1894-5. Those who wish to
continue the situation we have, and the
conducting of our public affairs as they
are now. should vote the Democratic
ticket. Those who want that which we
formerly had prosperity should vote
the Republican ticket.
DECREASE IN EXPORTS.
Under the Wilson tariff we cantnred
$208,000,000 less of the world's trade than
under the McKlnley tariff In 18D2. In
1895 we Imported $100,000,000 more for
eign goods than under the McKlnley
law In 1892. Every dollar's worth of
these Imported goods that same in
competition with .our manufacturers
should have been made by our own
manufacturers and our own labor.
When labor Is unemployed or poorly
paid In any country, stagnation and
losst of business comes to all except
those who live upon the Interest of
loaned money, and even that class must
suffer, in a degree. The amount of
wages paid for labor of all kinds In this
country in 1890 amounted to 32,282.8:!3.
In 1894 these sume wages had
shrunk to $l,2u5.&&2,791 This statement.
gives the underlying cause for the pres
ent unparalleled depression in all kind
of 'business In the country. What or
who caused this calamity to full, upon
our country? Democratic free trade
legislation on the tariff question his-'
tory repeating Itself bringing ruin and
disaster by the free trade. legislation of
the Democratic parly, as wus ln-ought
by free trade legislation In 1819, 1837 ami
1867. S '
If the manufacturer, the farmer anil
the wuge-earuer of every class and kind
desire the present state of affairs to
continue, they should vote the Dem
ocratic Wilson bill ticket. If they wish
for bright days, they should vote the
Republican ticket. The Wilson bill has
caused this great country of our more
material loss and decrease in wealth
than the civil war. It Is hard to find a
place to cease talking when one looks
around at the evils brought on the peo
ple by the unwise, unjust theoretical
legislation since the advent of. ar Dem
ocratic free trade congress, -v . -i.
HOW TO LEVY DUTIES. 1
I ask your further Indulgence that I
may Illustrate my Arm conviction upon
the tariff by one example, and in doing
this I believe that I state what 90 per
cent, of our people believe in If you
will relieve them from party considera
tions. It is stated that 2.000,000 bicycles
will be manufactured In- this country
and sold during 1896 at an average price
of $60 each, making $120,000,000 worth of
these articles made by our own labor.
All the profits and wages entering Into
their construction remain in the bands
of our own people. An. Englishman
comes here and calls on the bicycle
dealers and says: "I can furnish you
these 2.000.000 bicycles so that you
may sell them at $40 each and make the
same profit you would In selling the
American wheel." Under the case, as
I have stated It, I would not permit a
single bicycle to come into the country
that would undersell our own manu
facturers. In other words, I would put
a tariff of $20 on each imported bi
cycle. What I should do with bicycles
I should do with everything tnat is im
ported into this country everything
that comes in competition with our own
nroductlons.
There is no place for classes tn this
country. Capital should not Invade the
rights of labor, and labor should not in'
vade the light of capital. Their Inter
ests are mutual and they should be
friends and not enemies. I believe I
represent all the people who live upon
the farm, who work tn the shops and
manufactories, and who follow all the
vocations whereby they earn their
bread by the sweat of their brow, when
I say that 90 per cent, of that class of
people will agree with mo In my views
when stripped of party considerations
or political bias. The people I refer to
believe that America should be for
Americans. I do not mean by this that
a foreigner has not as much right under
our flag as a native-born; but I do be
lieve that when a foreigner comes here
and becomes a citizen he is an Ameri
can and not a foreigner.
The party that will keep Itself in
close contact with the people who labor.
with those who create the wealth of
this land that party can and Will suc
ceed. The party that does not will die,
as It ought to. The question of slavery
is dead tne question of labor will nev
er die. The protection of the classes I
refer to, by such legislation as will
keep them from coming in competition
with the cheap labor of Japan. China.
CJermany, Italy, England or France, is
tne legislation the people believe in.
and this great question is the founda
tlon upon which I stand before you.
Relieving in tne principle as the Repub
llcan party believes in it.
CURIOUS PRESCRIPTIONS.
Superstition In medicine and surgerv
may be traced over a period of many cen
turies. Time has deposed of many of
these superstitions. Vet there are some
large number, In foot that exist at
the present day. such as rubblnir the edse
of a wound with a stone and then throwing
the stone at a cat or a dog to transfer
the wound and remove oil source cf danger
from blood-poisoning; and the carrying
ok nuriw onwinuis in ine (pocKeis 10 pre
vent rheumatism "and." runs the rule
"they must be cart-led tn 'the left pocket of
mo irouvers to oe eneciivet
Among the Norwegians ana some of the
Indian tribes the hoof of the elk is consid
ered a potent renwviy for tne same disease.
The person afflicted must apply the hoof
to his heart, hold It in his left hand an'U
rub tils ear with it.
For toothache a nail driven into an oak
tree was sold to cure the pain promptly.
This remedy might be Improved upon. It
should read: "Drive the tooith Into an oak
tree." A written guarantee may be given
with tills remedy.
It. was formerly a common supprstltlm
In Cornwall, Kngland. to ask a person rid
ing on a piebald horse for a remedy for
whooping cough, and whatever the perm'i
namwdvwas regarded as on infallible rem
edy. Whv He Objected.
. He was a sedately dressed man whose
countenance was 'thoughtful and whose
literary taste as shown by the books which
ha carried with ihlm ito read on the 'train
indicated that he was a man of learned at
tainments; .Kven the - ibrakeman was
moved to assume a rexpectftil manner. As
he leaned over iilm to open the window he
suid:
"Kxcura me, professor."
The old gentleman was on Ills feet In an
mutant, his eyes flashing angrily.
"Needn't gtt mad," the torakeman said.
"I've gotter ten' ter me business."
"I don't care how modh you ettend to
your business. But don't you ever again
call me anything tout Mnlster.' Don't you
dare to call ma professor. I am neither a
dancing master, a prise-fighter nor a Jug
gler, and I ihave therefore no right to the
title." Washington Star.
" Mean. :,j
Wis "Do you pretend to have as good
Judgment a I haver'
He "Well, not our choice of partners for
life shews that my Judgment cannot be
ciMopared to yours." Bostan' Globe.
CGLUEUKIIERKJ'CLURE
Has Beet for Tea:y-0ae Years Ed
itor of tne nnladeipnia i tines.
HIS 1XFLIBXCB 0. . AFFAIRS
Oae of the Ploacera la the Work of
Affraachlsing the Party Newspaper
Press-Very Bright Sketch of
aa Interesting Career.
"Penn," In Philadelphia Bulletin,
A. K. McClure has Just completed
twenty-one ycr.rs of service In the
editorial conduct of the Times. At the
age of sixty-seven he is the chief sur
vivor of the old school of writers, who
mingled politics and Journalism to
gether. Long before he came to Phila
delphia he had been an authority in
the country press of Pennsylvania,
then, as it still Is. far more Important
relatively In its direct effects on politi
cal onlnlon thun the city papers. A
county organ, like his old Franklin Re
pository, often had a power in party
affairs through the Immediate personal
relations of the editor to his constitu
ency and to what was going on around
him. In MeClure's younger days polit
ies was an essential feature of the
function of the editor, not as an obser
ver but as a participant and a partisan.
The example of the Greeley-Weed-Prentlce
press with Its Inspirations."
its predictions and Its oracular deliv
erances was the dominant Influence of
the time and the distinct traces of it
may be found yet In McClure's style
and methods as -much as he tried to
shake it off when he started out In the
middle years to make Journalism his
distinct profession. .
The most interesting' feature of r's
career, in a glance over its past twenty
years. Is that having been Oroutrnt uo
tn the school of party journalism, he
has done more than any other man In
Philadelphia tu destroy It, to broaden
the Held of editorial discussion, and to
make olltlclan on all sides the ser
vants rather than the masters of the
press. The most beneficent. In fact the
only effect that outlived the Liberal
movement In 1872, was the Bpliit of In
drpendeiice, which the tribe of editorial
enthusiasts Who followed In the Ill
fated train of Greeley, subsequently
brought to their work. Th last edi
torial that Oreeley printed in the Tri
bune when the shadows were falling
thick and fast around hi in was a prom
ise to get out of the thongs of servitude,
and to tell the truth, and the Impulse
which it communicated to the press
has been felt ever since in a constantly
widening circle.
BUYS THE TIMES.
When McClure was casting about for
a place in Philadelphia Journalism in
the winter of 1875, after his failures
In politics and when the luw practice
which he was picking up precariously
tn his little olllce on Sixth street, above
Walnut, was far from profitable, his
first overture was to buy the Press from
John W. Forney. The bargain came
near being struck, and It it had been
consummated the colgnd would prob
ably have never gotten-so far beyond
and out of the Republican lines as he
did when he pjtched his Journalistic
tent on the remains of the Democratic
Age. Of this 'paper the late Dr. Mor
wlts hud been trying to make an elab
orate Illustrated dally, after the style
of the now-forgotten New York Graph
ic; but It had come tn lie associated
with the Bourbon, If not, also, at times
with the Copperhead, spirit of the Dem
ocracy and with memories of Union
mobs, and it was so moribund with
failure that its entire Identity was pur
posely submerged when the Times was
erected on its ruins.
Up to this time Colonel Forney had
been the most conspicuous figure In the
local press, and with a national repute
one of the powerful men trained In
the Democratic press under the teach
ings of Jackson end Buchanan, as Mc
Clure had been In the Whig country
press, as a disciple of Clay and Har
geant. Gifted and generous, he was
the most winning of all the men who
had figured In the journalism of the
city, and If he had described the
changes which were beginning to go on
around him In the decline of party or
gans, pure and simple, he might have
developed a greatness which he could
never win under the old system that
made a newspaper the toy of party
leaders, with their straws to tickle and
their rattles to please. Morton McMI
chael, In the twilight of his years, con
tributed to the North American, then
still the antique blanket sheet that had
come down from the days of Joseph
Chandler, the choice English that lifted
editorial discussion to the dignity of
scholarship and the refinements of the
publicist. William V. McKean was
editing the Ledger with a mind like
an encyclopaedia, and with a pen that
never touched paper until a subject
had been weighed and measured and
scanned and probed, and a mental
Roentgen light thrown Into It for the
discovery of any doubts that might re
main about the facts. The Record was
In a state of stagnation waiting for
Slngerly, and the-bright mind of L.
Clarke Davis was going to waste dur
ing his best years In the dreary proc
esses of helping the late W. W. Hard
ing steer the Inquirer through the devi
ous ways of a paper with the old bank
rupt act looming up before it for a
decade at every turn. The whole circu
lation of the morning press at this
time, the Ledger leading, with about
85,000 to 90,000, did not exceed 145,000. .
SHOCKING THE ANCIENTS.
McClure precipitated himself into a
journalistic community whose conspic
uous faults were snobbery, tuft-hunting
and servility, with a recklessness
that completely upset the old tradi
tions. He took up lines of attack
which had long been the property of
JAMES H. ECKELS, COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY.
From thi Cbtcsja Ttmet -
the powerful Sunday press, and which
hard hitters like Weatcott and Tag
gart had monopolized. He gave enter
tainment from the start to that con
siderable portion of the community
which regards a newspaper sensation
before breakfast as much of a neces
sity as the matutinal cocktail. He
took almost as much Journalistic pride
in the horse-whipping - which big Nat
McKay, then as herculean in frame as
himself, tried to give him one after
noon on Chestnut street as Story of the
Chicago Times is said to have felt
when handsome Lydla Thompson piled
her whip on his person. When Will
lam B. Reed, Buchanan's minister to
China, and the most graceful and In
cisive Democratic writer of his day,
attacked him In the World, and. de
scribing the rebel raid at Chambers
burg, wrote how the flames which lie
Causland lighted at McClure'a house
sent up showers of sparks which, "each
whirling Its way up to heaven, told of
some legislative job well paid for,"
McClure assumed to enjoy It, and used
to amuse the public greatly by reprint
ing the worst things his enmies said
about him. When Forney left the
Press and was succeeded by W. W.
Nevin, he kept up a row nearly every
morning that soon became an unequal
match. In short, his policy was a
good deal like Ben Butler's when he be
came governor of Massachusetts to
shock ancient and respectable folk, and
to keep all the old women of either sex
In a state of nervous ferment, looking
under the bed or dreaming of ghosts.
All this would be done In a strain of
rhetoric which was like an old-fashioned
stump speech, modelled after the
style of "Junius." and garnished, often
very: happily, with the latest epithets
from the vocabulary of slang. ' It was
the kind of rhetoric which the crowd
likes and which generally Jingles well
In the popular ear. It always had the.
Impressiveness which comes from a
cocksure statement delivered with the
giavity of a supreme court Justice
handing down an opinion, or like the
oracular forecasts of a clairvoyant
peering Into the mysteries of the" fu
ture; It often had the ring of insincer
ity to the judicious, and it much more
often, when analyzed for facts, turned
out to be a' cloud of wordst, puffed up
and expanded like the gauky skirts of
Lola Fuller. But, after all these and
other things like them are allowed for,
especially the Injustice which has been
sometimes done to private character In
a simian-like spirit of mischief, rather
than In malice, the McClure Influence
In the past twenty years has been a
stimulus. It has given rise to new de
partures In journalism, and with one
exception there Is not a morning paper
which Is not vastly stronger in power,
circulation and a certain professional
pride than when McClure threw his
shining lance into the field regardless
of Whom he might hit and anxious to
prove his idea that the organ Journal
Ism of the Oreuleys und the Forneys
wus a thing of the past. . ( ,
But the McClure of today Is not the
McClure of 17S. As the colonel ap
proaches the three score and ten he
grows mellowy und magnanimous, and
philosophical, forgiving old enemies and
no longer inviting new ones. . The 4,000
columns of editorials he has written In
the past twenty-one years begin with
the bludgeon and end with the rattan.
CLEVER STORYETTES."
Not in the Nat tire of an Insinuation.
.."My darling," said the wife, as, at 9 30
a. m., tie found 'her hut band strapping up
all the umbrellas in the hill, as If ho were
off on a railway Journey, "my darllmr,
tiurely you are not nolng to take ail these
iu 'iiib omce wi'tn you.
Sweetest," he responded suavely, but
firmly, "surely you remember that you
have un 'at lunm' this afternoon."
g'ho lulsed her hands in horror.
"Hurely you do not Insinuate that my
guestH would Meal "
'teal! Nonsense. But It's a .million
to one they would recognize the Initials."
fc'he hung her 'heu j In silence, knowing
:u".i.'eJJ. fh?4 ". " but spoke, the
truth. Plck-Me-Up. ' .
Ilo Was Sure of It.
"My father," said Simpson, solemnly.
Was more sonsl.tivn tn ru, la ihn un.'.-
body I ever knew. The slightest exposure
gave him a cold." . .
ble " mUit have been very dltagreea-
"Indeed It was.He never could sit near a
draught for a minute without catching a
cold. 1 remember on one occasion he was
sitting in the house of a friend, when .ill
at once my father began to sneeie. He In
sisted thait there was a draught in the
room. Kvery effort was made to dis
cover wnere me uraught was but in vain.
The doors and windows were closed and
tihere was no tlrenlace. but mv fathur kunt
on sneexing and Insisted that there must
De a uxaught in the room, and so there
was." , '
"Where was It?"
"It was found that the stopper had been
loft out of the vinegar bottle."
Her Opinion.
Ho "A fellow I know bought a ring tho
other day and he wants to get a woman's
opinion about It."
he "A diamond?"
die "Oh yes. He bought it for the girl
ne is going to marry."
She "I see. .Ami has brought It around
for me to look at."
He "Precisely. You see, foe wanted to
bp ure he was right."
fine "Sensible man! He wasn't willing
to take his own judgment but wanted that
qc a woman."
He "That's It. Will von "
ighe "With pleasure. Ah! that looks like
a beautiful stone. Tell me about your
friend. He must be an Independent fellow
io. go on ana ouy tne ring wirnout con
suiting the hidv."
He "He Is. He believes that If he hits
upon tna riKM thing ihimself she will re
spect him all tho more.''. , .-.
eho (examining the stone carefully and
then putting it on her little finger) "And
yet he wants to be sure?"
He "Yes. He levos 'her so much that he
wants her to be perfectly happy with It,
She "How considerate".
He "He tries to be. What do you think
or tne ring: . -
She "It's lovely. But " .
He (eagerly) "But what?"
Stie (blushing) "But can't you see It's
too small?" Harper's Bazar.
HsrsYt. "by to 'OourtitY' i
CEWARE THE EVIL EYE
Mat; Old Superstitions in Vogue
Among Theatrical Folk.
MOSr RIDICULOUS WHIMSIES
Oeep-Bootsd, Silly Faaeiss Which Astora
nave, bat Cannot Eiplaia-Idlosyn-
erasles of Prominent Members of
... the Dramatis Profession.
The palm for being most thoroughly
impregnated with superstition has fre
quently been awarded to the sailor and
the soldier; but to those people who
have had even a passing acquaintance
with men and women of the theatrical
profession, the assertion that any other
class of human beings can be more
superstitious than actors Is beyond be
lief, says the New York Times.
Not only are the stage, the play and
the theatrical costume saturated with
superstition, but every event In life has
tor the actor Its accompanying super
stition. So far does It go with his su
perstition that he sometimes founds a
superstition on a superstlton as, for
Instance, In the habit of wearing dead
men's clothes, the clothing on one's
self In such habiliments having for
ages been regarded as sure to result In
death to the wearer. To an actor the
wearing of the stage costume of some
great, dead actor is sure to give Inspira
tion and fame, according to the pet su
perstition, and the old superstition Is
thu,s wiped out of existence and loses
Its force. In ordinary life the old saw
says that it U an indication that "the
evil eye" is upon the person who sees
a pin or any sharp Instrument with the
point toward him; but this Is reversed
In the theatrical profession, fur it Is
bad luck to see a pin with the head to
ward one. It Is the delight of all bet
tors on the race-track to touch the
hump of a hunchback, and all gantb
lers at Monte Carlo consider this act
as sure to bring good luck; but on the
contrary, the actor dates his bad luck
from the apearance of a hunchback in
the audience on a "first night" or some
other time.
PECULIAR TO THE PROFESSION.
There are superstitions In the pro
fession, clinging to supernumerary and
star alike, which are unknown outside
the profession. A cross-eyed man
could not find employment In any ca
pacity within the walls of a theater.
If the rule should be relaxed, and a
cross-eyed stage carpenter or a prop
erty man should be engaged, he would
be discharged the very moment the
slightest ill-luck befell the company,
for it would be his presence that
brought misfortune. The actor or act
resH who has several times been In the
cast of an unsuccessful play, Is given
the name of a Jonah, and ever after Is
regarded as sure to bring Ill-luck to
others. It is a fact that many a prom
ising actor has been obliged to leave
his profession because he was tabooed
as a Jonah; and made unwelcome
wherever he went, by his fellows of the
profession. On the other hand there are
actors who are engaged as mascots
and cherished like gifted talismans. The
star who has happened to be housed
In several hotels which have been visit
ed by fire is called the "lire fiend," and
houses in which they happen to put up.
as well as theatres In which they appear
are given a wide birth when possible by
all members of the profession. Miss
Kate Claxton, after the burning of the
Brooklyn theater, acquired the name,
for she was playing an engagement
there tn 'The Two Orphans" in the
winter of 1876, when the; terrible con
flagration occurred.
The Individual superstitions of certain
prominent actors are often amusing
and always ridiculous. For Instance, a
great actor saw a load of hay on the
afternoon of the day upon which he was
to appear In a new play. He was suc
cessful, and ever after Insisted upon
having provided for him a load of hay
upon which to wish before entering the
theatre on the first night of a new play.
He happened to be successful with all
his new plays, and attributed yhls suc
cess not alone to his own talent but
mostly to the fact that he had made a
wish upon a load of hay. If one new
play had been a failure there Is no doubt
the hay would have lost Its virtue and
been discarded as an evil worker.
AVOIDED ODD NUMBERS.
Edwin Booth Was regarded as a man
of good common sense, yet he would
never sleep In a room in a hotel with an
odd number. His great friend, Law
rence, had a lasting prejudice agalnBt
people who had many "S's" in their
names, and always made up his com
pany, so far as possible, with men and
women in whose names the objection
able letter did not appear. His friends
attributed this prejudice of Barrett's,
surely strong enough to be styled super
stition, to the fact that his own name
O'Shaughnessy had so many "S's" In
It.
The fast friend of Forrest and great
tragedian, John McCullough, had a su
perstition concerning the manner of
putting on his shirt and other apparel,
for he would never permit his dresser
to put any garment over his head. This
was only one of the many superstitions
which governed the life of an otherwise
sane man, but this one was very incon
venient at times, and caused much
trouble In the making of his garments.
John T. Raymond always regarded a
red-headed woman with extreme hor
ror. To- meet a red-headed woman on
the day of the production of a new play
waB, to him, an omen of bad luck, and
he has been known to remain in the
house all day In order not to be exposed
to the superstition.
There is one funny superstition which
held poor J. K. Emmet to the day of
his death and made him appear very
ridiculous at times, as he wasvery fain
to keep It to himself. Instead of explain
ing his action. If he was going up or
coming down stairs and another person
attempted to pass him on the flight he
would always go back and start over
again, no matter what his hurry might
be. In a crowded hotel one may
Imagine how many times he may have
turned In descending several fights of
stairs and how laborious his Journey.
Nat Godwin is certainly a man of good
common sense, and no one to look at
him, would suppose that he has a pet
superstition, yet he has, for he consid
ers it good luck to meet a gray horse
In the- morning. The well-known
James Lewis has been known to carry
in his pocket a small shoe for a mas
cot, und will never play a new part or
Indulge In a game of cards without hav
ing that mascot In his pocket, although
the record docs not say that he always
wins, He found the shoe many yeurs
ago. and hna ever since regarded It as
a talisman., Tom WhlfCen always said
that he owed his success to his know
ledge of music, and that If he had a
musical entrance In sharps he was all
right, .but let the band get Into flats
when he entered and ho was sure of his
effort falling flat on the audience, al
though tho audlenro never noticed the
difference in the key.
NAILS FRIGHTENED CLARA. '
It has been said of Clara Morris that
she never set her font upon the stage If
there happened to be a stray nail there,
and always Insisted upon its removal
before she would make an entrance. Of
Fanny Davenport it is said that she will
never use cC cosmetic of another make
than that of a man who served her from '
his own manufacture when she was a
child. Once she was obliged to make
up her face for a first appearance with a
strange cosmetic, which had been rec
ommended to her, and the play was not
a success. "The American Girl" was Its
name. Ado . Rohan regards as an omen
of Ill-luck A pin on the stage with the
head turned toward her. The first
night of "Love on Crutches," at Daly's
theater, she saw a pin on the stage with
the head turned toward her, and to this
circumstance she has ever since attrib
uted the fact that another actress, in a
subordinate part, made a greater suc
cess than she did in the leading role.
It may not be superstition which gov
erns Agnes Booth In the action, but It
Is a fact that ahe will never permit a
wig to bo dressed upon her head.
Theatrical managers are frequently
superstitious to a great degree, and
many of them might be cited as having
all the folk-lore extant, especially that
concerning the production of a new
play. It Is said of Tony Pastor that on
the morning of the day of his produc
tion of a new play he always puts his
left sock on first, and if he happens to
get his shirt on wrong-side out it goes
with him that way all uay. Ned Gil
more considers It an omen of bad luck
if, when walking with .a. friend, some
person or object passes between them,
and he will retrace his steps for blocks
to go around such interfering person or
object. If necessary, so as to pass the
Interfering body with his friend at his
side. John Stetson's dreams are world
famed, and the horror of Augustln Daly
when a cross-eyed person asks for ad
mission to his theater on a first night
has been commented upon many times.
MASSACI1TSETTS' GOVERNOR.
Comes from Sturdy Xcw England Stock
Patrlotlo and Lcyal.
Boston, March 31. Lieutenant Gov
ernor Roger Wolcott, Who became chief
magistrate of Massachusetts on the
death of Governor Green ha Ige, comes
of a distinguished American family.
He Is a descendant of the famous Rog
er Wolcott, who was the governor of
Connecticut tn the seventeenth century,
and of Oliver Wolcott, who was secre-
ROGER WOLCOTT,
tary of the treasury In the early days
of the republic. Roger Wolcott was
one of the signers of the declaration
of Independence, and the family has
ever been a patriotic and loyal one.
The present lieutenant governor la a
stout patriot, and one who clings to
tne traditions of patriotism. The ticket
on which he was elected last fall swept
Massachusetts with a majority of 80,
000. The term expires next January,
and Governor Wolcott'a successor will
be elected at the general elections In
November. The law of Massachusetts
Is odd in relation to the present sltua
tlon. For twenty years until now there
has never been a vacancy in the office
of governor. But Lieutenant Governor
Wolcott will not succeed as governor.
During the illness of Mr. Greenhalge
he was "acting governor." The con
stitution does not transmit the title of
governor to the second officer of state
In the event of the death of the first
officer. On the death of the first of
ficer the second officer Issues a proclam
ation declaring that there Is a vacancy
In the office of governor. The lieuten
ant governor then ceases to be acting
governor, but becomes '.'lieutenant gov
ernor and commander-in-chier."
MK. JEFFERSON'S LIMITATIONS.
It Was Certain That Ha Could Not Aet
. In a Clrcns.
From the Grand Rapids Herald.
The amusing Ignorance of some peo
ple, whose lives are spent away from
cities, in regard to the duties of an
actor can be illustrated by one little
Incident told by Joseph Jefferson, which
occurred while he was living on his
piantatton in Louisiana.
"I had been out duck hunting," said
Mr. Jefferson, "and was being paddled
slowly along the bayou In a canoe by
my man Friday, a colored boy about 18
years old. 'Mr. Jos., will you be mad If
I ax you somefin?' said John, the col
ored lad referred to.
" 'No, John; what Is it?' said I.
" 'What does you do In a' Bhow?'
"I told him it would be rather dlffl'
cult for me to explain what my par
tlcular line of business was.
" 'Well,' said John, 'does you swallow
Knives:
"I told him I had no talent In that
way.
"Well, your son told me that you
swallowed knives and forks and fire,
and de Lord knows what all, and I be
lieve he was Just foolln' me.'
"I. agreed with him, saying he waB
quite oapame oi it.
" 'Well, dere's one thing certain,' said
jonn. -iou aon t act in the circus.'
"I aked him how he could be certain
of that. John burst into an immoder
ate lit of laughter, almost tipping the
iBiitie over in nis violent mirth.
"'Oh, no, oh, no. sah! vou can't fnnl
me on dat. I've seen you get on your
iivio, yuu him i no circus riaer. ,
TRIE LOVE'S HOL'GII COURSE.
"Anything new on hand. Ethel?" "Yes,:
another engagement ring." Albany News.
She Have you ever loved another? Ho
i, oi course; oio you ,rnink I'd prac
tlce on a nice irirl Ilka vou? Rai-kr
"Well, that old maid, Miss Brown, has
got a beau at lat." "What makes you
think so?" "Why, she retusEi sliced
onions at the supper table tonight." Flo
rida. Times-Union.
"Do you think Friday Is an unlucky
day?" "No, I don't. 1 proposed to Miss
Talkmore on Friday." "Well, that proves
It's unlucky, doesn't It?" "No, It doesn't.
She refused me." Amusing Journal.
Elizabeth I hear that Gladys broke off
her engagement with Mr. Dawson beenuse
he attempted to restrict her liberties.
Bess Yes. She was engaged to two other
men and he objected. Amusing Journal.
Father You may as well give up think
ing about t hut young Hardrash. He dous
not love you. Duughter How do you
know, papa? Father I met him at tho
club Inst nJ he refused to lend me five
pounds. Ttd-Bltti.
"Do you think that marriage is a fail
ure, Mr. Aekln?" pa'il AIIks Elder to a
your.g 'man whom phe knew to bn en
gaged. "1 haven't got that far yet," was
the frank raply, "but I'm pretty well con
vinced that courtship h bankrupty."
Family Call.
Smallpay (rising from his bended knee)
Then, Ml. "3 Hlinlnd, you refuxe to walk
along life's puthwav with me? Mlxa III
mtnd (haughtily) Yes, Indeed, end with
anyone else. The man 1 marry must lie
nble to kerpa carrl&ge. New York Week
ly. Mr. Hnrdnutt T admit, Rlr, that my life
hail not been what H should be, but I truly
and uuslll8hly love your daughter, nnd
If evf r 1 give her a moment's .pain I hope
I'll he made to suffer torture for II. old
gentleman (warmly) Oh, you will. You
don't know her. Saturday Xlght.
A ttnsv Ycnr.
Bobble "Say, If you are going to pro
Pvt to RlKter I wish you would let me
know the night."
Klddlobuck "What do you want to
know for?"
liobldo "Well, she's had four this year
already, and I haven't minsed one yet."
Life. ..
The tinnsns Snndow.
Westerner We call 'that the Kansas
Sandow. ' . ,
Rasiterner Wliy fo? ' --.'.
Westerner He lifted the mortgage off
his farm inside of a year. Detroit Free
Press. . . . ' 4' . i
"!.,.'''.
msi
Curious Laws of Many Coiatrics
These Subjects.
British Parliament Rcroiti
A Compilation Which Shows That Stats
Books Are by No Means aa Call aa
They Are Generally Rtpre
acated to Be.
The very Important reports whlok
have Just been presented to the British,
parliament on marriage and divorce 1
foreign countries jind In the colonies at
the Instance of Heiuilker Heaton ex
hibit singular diversities of ODlnlon
mmg legislatures on some points, a
at the same time singular unanimity
mners. v
The minimum age at which marriage
is lawful varies very much. In Eng
land It Is 14 for the male and 1! for tho
female, when with the consent of tho
parents or guardians, but after 21 both
sexes aTe free of control. Newfound
land, Mexico, Natal. South Australia.
Cape of Good Hope and the Argentina
Republic appear to be the only ones)
whose lawa agree with those of Eng
land on this point. In New Zealand.
Tasmania and New South Wales there
ia no statutory age for marriage o
minors. In Switzerland and the Neth
erlands It Is 18 and 16 for the sexea
respectively, but while majority is at
tained In Swltserland at 20, In tho
Netherlands it Is not reached until 23.
Greece permlta.boya and girls of 14
and 12 to get married, and majority la
reached four years later, but adults
above 80 are prohibited. . The same pro
hibition exists tn Russia, where 18 a'nd
16, and In the Trans-Caucasus where. IS
and 13 are the lowest limits. Franca,
Italy, Luxemburg, Belgium and Rou
mania agree in prohibiting.. marrlaga
under 18 and IS (except by dispensation,
from the highest authority), and In fix
ing the majority at 25 and 2L In Aus
tria minors may be married at 14 and
majority Is reached at24. In Bavaria
and Wurtemburg It Is 25 and 24 and
marriage may not-take place before 2a
and li, as Is the law also In. Denmark
and Germany. In Chile marriage la
lawful at puberty, and while tn Bras 11
It is Illegal under 16 and 14, It may 'take
place earlier to avoid a criminal sen
tence. In Spain the limit is 14 and 12.
or legal puberty, and both are of ace
at-23; nevertheless a daughter Is for
bidden to leave the paternal root with
out her parents' consent until she Is 25.
In the United States there are alwaya
three parties to a marriage "thetman,
the woman and the state." The lowest
ages for marriage with consent Is 14
and 12 in twenty-one states, Is and Id
tn nine states, 18 and 15 In six, 17 and 14
In four, 16 and 14 in three, 15 and 12 In
two and 21 and 18 in the same number.
For marriage without parental consent
the ages are for males and females 21
and 18 In twenty-eight states, as In Eng
land In seven states, and 21 16, 18 16,
and 18 15 In one state each. Eleven
states forbid first cousins to marry and
miscegenation Is permitted in some
states and forbidden in others.
Other chief prohibitions, besides those
arising from insufficient age,, relate to
excess of age, to religious differences,
blood affinity, spiritual or canonical af
finity, affinity by adoption, physical or
mental Incompetency and difference of
color. In Servla men over 60 and wo
men over 50 are prohibited from enter
ing into marriage. In most countries
widows are not allowed to remarry un
til the expiration of ten months after
the death of the husband, and in one.
the widower must not remarry within
three months of his wife's death, and
ill miuilier, uui uiiuci bia, jii c t
Idiots, cripples, maniacs, deaf and
dumb, school pupils, guardians with
their wards, those very 111 or suffering
from hereditary disease, and widows of
priests and deacons may not marry. In
Greece a man must not marry the be
trothed of his brother. In Brasll uncles
and nieces, nephews and aunts may
marry together, and in Belgium also .
by royal permission on advice of the
Minister of Justice. Marriage with a
deceased wife's Bister Is legal In West
ern Australia, Queensland, Victoria,
New Zealand. South Australia, Tas
mania, New South wales and' Cape of
Good Hope, and between brothers and
sisters-in-law In Brasll and Sweden.and
by dispensation In Belgium.
Marriages are void between white
and negro, white and Indian and white
and Mongolian, In Nevada and Oregon;
and between white and African or Chi
nese In Utah. The prohibition between
white and negro exlstS iff at least
twenty-three of the statrV In North
Carolina they are void between negroes
and Indians and are voidable from
many causes, as insanity, consent ob
tained by force or fraud; and in many
states where contracted under age
without "consent." Forced marriage
Is punishable In Arkansas by death tn
the male participant. In the United
States Smith Carolina alone arranta no
divorce.
CAUSES FOR DIVORCE.
The habitual use of opium or soma
similar drug, felony. Infamous crime,
long imprisonment, cruelty, Intolerable
indignity to the person, habitual man
ifestations of hatred and violent and
ungovernable temper are each and all
sufllcient causes for divorce in most of
the states. Three grant divorce if hus
band or wife Join the Shakers; one if
the husband la a vagrant, and three
if the parties have lived separate from
four to five years. In Illinois the court
can divorce at discretion or where it
decides it impossible for the couple to
live together in peace and happiness.
In AuBtro-Hungary "Greek Orientals"
may be divorced because of "irreconcil
able hatred" and Protestants from "In
superable aversion." The latter is also
effective in Germany should there be
no issue of the marriage. Defamation
of character and quarrelsomeness are
sufficient grounds In France and Oer
many, and a Frenchman may be di- .
vorced for Ill-treating his mother-In-
law or step-children, for calling his wife
opprobrious names before her children,
such as "Canaille," of for falsely ac
cusing her of theft or some other grave
crime and for a variety of other rea
sons. Marriage between a Christian
and a heathen is prohibited In Greece,
and a woman qan be divorced for con
cealing from her husband a conspiracy
against the king, for stopping all night
against the husband's wish at any
house other than her parents', or for
attending without his knowledge or
consent, at races, theaters or shooting
expeditions or for having attended
against his wish at banquets or for
bathing in the company of men.
In some countries Belgium and Rou
mania, for example no wife can be di
vorced after forty-five years of age or
twenty years of married life. In the
latter country divorce may be obtained
by mutual consent If the husband and
wife are not less than 25 and 2f respec
tively, and have been less than two
years married, In which case neither
can remarry until three years have
elapsed. In Russia no one may marry
a fourth time. Members of the Greek
and Roman Catholic churches must not
marry non-Chrlstlans nor Protestants
heathens. Change of religion from
Christian to Mohemmedan entitles to
divorce in Saxony.
Loss of civil rights, with deporta
tion, dissolves marriage in Russia un
less the innocent party accompany the
guilty. This explains why so many
faithful wives follow their husbands to
Siberian exile.
In Italy the wife must contribute
toward the maintenance of the husband
If his means are insufficient, and In
Franco and Belgium sons-in-law are
compelled to maintain the fathers and
mothers-in-law when necessary.
Lillian Swain left Augustln Daly's "Mid
summer Night's Dream" company In
Pittsburg lust night. She will re-enter tha
comic operatic field.
, ALSO C1VC
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