6
HARRISBURG TELEGRAPH
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FRIDAY EVENING, DEC. 31
Life is not so short but that there
is always room for courtesy.—Emer
son.
MR. TAYLOR'S GOOD WORK
CITY COMMISSIONER TAYLOR
will retire to-morrow with a
record of substantial achieve
ment in his particular department.
He has accomplished much in a prac
tical way and it is unfortunate that
the political flim-flamming that seems
part and parcel of the new system of
municipal government should have
confused the public mind regarding
Mr. Taylor's work. It is creditable to
him that in the closing days of his
term he has taken over another im- j
portant stretch of the city parkway j
which has been under negotiation for I
some time.
Of all those who are more or less
familiar with the things that have
been done during Mr. Taylor's term
of two years, none is more cordial
in praise of this official than Mrs.
William Henderson, president of the
Civic Club, which has had the hearty
co-operation of the commissioner
right along. It is worth while to
have the commendation of such or
ganizations in the midst of misrepre
sentation and misunderstanding of
unselfish public service.
The taking over of the St. Lawrence
Catholic Church property is practically
the final step in the acquirement of the
important property of the Capitol Park
zone. There are still other parcels of
land to be bought, but it is expected
by the commission that there will be
no serious difficulty in taking title to
what is left. There remains about a
year in which to acquire the remaining
property and meanwhile the State au
thorities will have a study made of
the landscape treatment so that the
next Legislature will be In nosltion to
direct what is to be done with the en
tire section east of the Capitol as well
as the older part of the park bounded
by Fourth, Walnut, Third and North
streets.
THK COM.MISSION WHIRMGIG
HARRISBURG is being treated as j
are the other third-class cities j
of the State to the usual whirli- I
gig of political manipulation as a re- I
suit of the commission experiment.
Instead of being able to give their at
tention to the important public du
ties, which are delegated to them, the
five managers o£ the city's afTairs are.
pulled this way and that by political
interests to the detriment of the best
interests of the people.
It was obvious from the beginning
of this new system that these unfor
tunate differences would arise. In
stead of promoting harmony of action,
the exact opposite has been the case.
We have heard much of nonpartisan
ship and all that sort of thing, but
it must be plain to the wayfaring
man that politics will always prevail
without regard to the particular form
of administration imposed upon thc
munlcipalities by the Legislature.
All that the citizens of Harrisburg
desire is that the political eruption
may not striously impair the efficiency
of the government which will start
out on a new lap next Monday. In
the playing for position the commis
sioners will do well to keep In mind
that their first and most Important
duty is the transaction of the people's
business. Naturally there will fee some
political by-play; that is to be ex
pected. Hut this should simply be
a diversion and not in any sense al
lowed to Interfere with the more seri
ous duties of the commissioners.
We hear much of combinations of
one sort and another and such com
binations are certain to develop from
lime to time. Just as they do in all
legislative bodies; but it doesn't fol
low that all the energy of the com
missioners shall be exerted in rivalry
of any sort.
If anything will ever force civil ser
vice as an inflexible rule of our munici
pal sdminlstratlon In Pennsylvania, It
Is the demoralisation that seems to
come with every change of admlnis
tratton
The Colonel Is not putting his O. K.
on several ambitious persons who
sspire to be candidates for the Presi
dency, He Is'maintaining at Oyster
Bay a strong position on the watch
tower, and what will be his final con
FRIDAY EVENING, HARRISBURG s?Sii& TELEGRAPH /DECEMBER 31, 1015
• olnsion remains for the Oyster Bay Rage
himself to declare. It is rather amusing
that practically every man mentioned
for President thus far is said to be ac
ceptable to T. R. We suspect that all
this may foreshadow a situation in
which the Colonel may determine that
he himself is the only solution.
THE PASSING YEAR
THE passing year will be recorded
on a dun-colored page in /he
history of the world. It has
seen more of bloodshed, more of sor-
I row. more of waste, more of wicked
ness than humanity a year previous
could have thought possible. It has
witnessed no great progress in any
line of endeavor. It has watched
Europe in its march back toward the
Middle Ages. It has seen the flower of
German, English, French and Russian
youth destroyed. Its journey of twelve
months has been along a road strewn
with human hopes, shattered cathe
drals and ruined towns. Its way has
been marked by the corpses of women
nnd children slain without excuse and
without warning, in sheer wantonness.
The wreck of civilization has been left
in its wake. "Frlghtftilness" has been
Its keynote.
And all this for what? That the
selfish ambition of one man might
have sway; that brute force might be
matched against moral suasion; that
autocracy might be substituted for the
individual freedom that has been
growing apace In the world for the
past century or more. Fortunately
for Europe, fortunately for us, fortu
nately, indeed, even for those who nre
at this moment laying down their lives
In such gallant manner in behalf of
that monarchal government that
would sway the world, the sun so long
dimmed is beginning to show Itself a
trifle just over the horizon and another
New Year's Day may see a brighter
future in prospect for Europe and the
world at large. That seems to be the
biggest promise of a year that has had
but little indeed for which humanity
may give thanks.
In our own country, even, the arts
and the sciences have lagged. The
accomplishment of wireless telegraphy
and the perfecting of long distance
talking by wire have been the only out
standing mechanical developments of
the year. We have not been thinking
of promoting the ways of peace; our
minds have been turned to war and
preparations for defense against some
such unscrupulous foe as laid waste
all Belgium. Perhaps in the end it
has been well that we are awake to
possibilities of that kind, but the sub
ject has taken much of the time and
the thought of our best minds and
civilization is the poorer therefor and
Americans have been robbed to some
extent of the birthright of progress
which otherwise would have been
theirs.
The year has been poor in accom
plishments for immediate good both
here and in the world at large and the
only hope held out Is that the sacrifice
will not have been in vain; that from
the blood and travail of the past
twelve months a new civilization and
a new hope for humanity will be born.
Else 'twere better that the year now
waning had never been.
craws PLAY
THE newspapers of the present
week have published the first of
a lot of photographs made on
board the Ford peace ship, and one
of them shows what the photographer
has labelled "Two distinguished mem
bers of the Ford peace party playing
leap frog; the Rev. Charles F. Aked
leaping over the Rev. Dr. Jenkyn
Lloyd Jones."
That picture, it seems to us, sums
up the whole Ford peace project—
play.
If a Legislature had undertaken the
voyage it would have been called a
"junket" by the opposition press. As
a vacation trip for tired business and
professional men it might have been
a boon to many. As a serious effort
to end the war in Europe it would be
a joke were it not for the pathetic
failure of its founder to measure up
to the standards many of his admirers
had set for him.
Flash lights of the delegates gath
ered in serious conclave aboard the
peace ship might have elicited smiles
of pity; snapshots of two of the most
"distinguished members of the party"
playing leapfrog when the world
thought they were weighing between
them weighty problems of interna
tional welfare excite only derision.
The picture ought to be preserved
for use in school histories accompany
ing the paragraph that will some day
bo devoted to setting forth the fruit
less voyage of the Oscar 11. It sums
the situation up so well.
A LESSON FROM GERMANY
IT is estimated by careful students of
the subject that when the Euro
pean war is over American tourists
will swarm to trans-Atlantic coun
tries, spending annually not less than
$500,000,000 there and depleting our
own resources to a corresponding de
gree. Perhaps! and then again, per
haps not. It is not at all unlikely
that the same public sentiment which
puts the stamp of disapproval upon
the hyphenated American will also
place a mark of disfavor upon that
species of citizen who can see noth
ing of Interest or superiority In his
own country, but must spend his leis
ure time and surplus money to gratify
the pride and replenish the pockets
of natives of Europe. Probably we
shall learn and practice the economic
principle enunciated by the Emperor
of Germany when he said to his peo
pie: "Always remember that when
you spend your money In other coun
tries you make your own country that
much the poorer."
["Pollttc* OV
'Pejovoifttfuua
By the Ex-Oommlßcemu
' "TTTI—m•
Mayor-elect Thomas B. Smith, of
Philadelphia, who Tiad Governor
Brumbaugh for a golf partner at At
lantic City, and continued the political
"conversations" he had with him in
this city just before Christmas, was
visited last night by Senator Penrose,
and It is intimated that the harmony
program on which the mayor has been
busy lately is being worked out. Mean
while, there are said to be some move
ments under way between William A.
Mugee. former mayor of Pittsburgh
and now Public Service Commission
er, and the Vare brothers which may
upset things.
Friends of Senator Penrose say that
there will be no contest and that the
election of Republican State commit
teemen favorable to him for national
committeemen cam be expected.
• —Judge John Faber Miller, who was
appointed 'ge and then elected for
the full tei in Montgomery, took the
oath yesteraay.
—Chester's new mayor is going'
a head appointing olficers without. regard
to the proceedings to test his election
which have been under way at Media.
—York city firemen have joined in
a protest to city council against re
duction of appropriations to the com
panies. They will make a lively con
test against the ordinance.
—Judge Mayer Sulzberger, the
noted Philadelphia jurist, in a sort
of farewell talk yesterday declared
that he thought the old method of se
lecting judges was preferable to the
scramble under the new acts.
—C. E. Albrightwas yesterday named
as chief of surveys to succeed George
S. Webster, who becomes director of
docks in Philadelphia. The Vares
take credit for him. He is considered
an expert.
—Daniel Haggerty has been ap
pointed the Democratic real estate as
sessor In Philadelphia. Both factions
claim him.
—Representative James A. Dunn
was yesterday re-elected president of
the Twenty-third ward Republican
club in Philadelphia and given a por
trait of himself at a banquet.
—Stephen J. Toole, retiring county
commissioner of Allegheny, was ap
pointed mercantile appraiser and there
may be a tight over it with the new
commissioners. The office pays about
SB,OOO. Toole is a Democratandfollows
the Old Guard flag.
—Ellsworth Kelley. city clerk of
Scranton, may have to light for re
election.
—Wilkes-Barre and Altoona will
have very peaceful changes of admin
istration, it is said.
—Senator P. W. Snyder, of Blair, is
said to have congressional bees buzz
ing about him.
—Some notable changes in the
bench of Pennsylvania will be made
on Monday and judges whose names
have been household words will retire.
In the Cumberland district
Judge Sadler will leave the
bench after a long and not
able career, being one of the few
judges in State history to be succeeded
by his son. In the Juniata Valley dis
trict J. M. Woods, a former senator,
will be succeeded by Thomas P. Bailey
and in Adams county, ex-Senator D. P.
McPherson ascends the bench on
which several members of his family
have sat with distinction. Judge
Swope, whom he succeeds is one of the
well-known judges of the State. In-
Lancaster, Franklin and York sitting
judges begin new terms. In Chester,
Berks, Lawrence, Mercer. Center and
Tioga counties well-known judges re
tire.
—The commissions for Justice Wall
ing and Judge Rossiter were sent from
the Capitol to Erie last night.
—Reading's mixed municipal situa
tion is said to be on a fair way to be
settled without the aid of the courts.
—Governor Brumbaugh is now said
to have his eye on several noted en
gineers for public service commis
sioner. The men boosted for the
place change from day to day.
—The borough of Sayre is having
trouble. The volunteer tlremen have
refused to serve any longer because
of lack of support from town council.
—Suit to prevent $160,000 being
placed in the sinking fund, which
would place Montgomery county out
of debt, is threatened in Norristown.
—Congressman S. Taylor North of
PunxsAtawney, is being boomed for
renoniinatlon by his friends. They
say that he will be renominated
without difficulty.
—Erie county will likely have a
couple of candidates for the full term
judgeship which will be filled at the
election iiv 1917. It is said that op
position to Judge Whittelsey is cer
tain.
—Some of the cities are finding
compensation expensive. The new
city of Bethlehem must spend S7OO
for insurance at the start.
—State Chairman Crow is in Phila
delphia looking over the situation.
THE CHIIISTIANS OF
MODERN BABYLONIA
Throughout Mesopotamia you will
find the descendants of th» ancient
Babylonians still living Tlie.v call
themselves Nasranl or Christians;
Europeans frequently call them Chal
deans. Though they all speak Arabic,
they stiff retain among themselves
their Chaldean language, whieh is
similar to the ancienl Babylonian.
They are a large, well-built people,
with light skin, and with features re
sembling those upon the sculptured fig
ures from the walls of the ancient pal
aces. They are by far the most pros
perous and progressive people in the
valley. The Christian Herald.
TOM IHBVMN OF YA 1.13
[From the Philadelphia Public ledger.]
There is a certain spirit which In the
exultant day of victory or In the
mourning hours of defeat is held to be
typical of Yale; and that Yale spirit was
In the blood and mettle of Tom Shevlln.
Be "was ever a fighter;" and he did nut
sit for the portrait of a carpet-knight
or a "barley-sugar efflgy." The real,
live man had faults enough, but Yale
loves him for the ends he has made,
the halfbacks he set on fire, the teams
that on nerve and grit played better
than they knew. Ills proteges did lose
mightily to Harvard, to be sure, in the
reaction of that, galvanic impetus thai
triumphed over Princeton. But as a
captain of lost causes, an eleventh-hour
Phil Sheridan from Winchester, no other
man like Shevlln lias been known at
New Haven. To steer a winning eleven
from strength to strength Is one thing:
to be called In and given full charge of
a demoralized assortment of plavers on
the eve of the all-Important matches Is
a different business. To Shevlin it was
sufficient glory to serve Yale. Be Rave
his life for her athletic renown. Others
have laid their intellectual laurels at
the feet of their alma mater. He did
what he could for her. and he did his
best.
"DON'T I,END MONEY TO KEI,\-
TIVBH," SAYS MINISTER
Says a minister In the Family's Monev
department of the January American
Magazine
" 'lf a relative "strikes" you for a
little loan, and you have the money and
are generously disposed, make him a
present of the amount; If you do not
care to give the monej away, harden
your heart and say. "No!" You'll keep
the relative's friendship longer, and
you'll have a little larger bank account
at the end of the year.'"
- THE CARTOON OF THE DAY
mmmmrnmmmu I ■ ————MMMJ
NEXT TURN!
ifSJ%jh|i|
t £%5»jJ %W
''"'"FFPL HEYI ]^/ APPEARANCE P .
I VAUDEVILLE lj
TELEGRAPH'S PERISCOPE ]
—Getting up in the morning when
one has the "grip" is like pulling loose
from a plank to which one has been
glued.
—Now prepare to write it 1916.
—Forty-cent gasoline would do much
to settle the jitney question.
—Dr. Cook is finding it as hard to
get to Germany as to the North Pole.
—Substitute an H for the first capital
SI and you'll know what we think of
those Mummers.
1 EDITORIAL COMMENT"
"We congratulate the President on
his novel vigor," sneers tho London
Chronicle. Perhaps in time we shall
be able to congratulate the British
Government on some novel military
vigor in the Balkans and at the Dar
danelles.—New York World.
"Germany has such immense stores
of copper as to suffice for years to
come," said the Chancellor in the Reich
stag, and the cheers that greet<Sl this
statement almost drowned the sound
of the workmen's hammers stripping off
the copper roof.—Wall Street Journal.
Yuan Shi Kai having accepted the
Imperial crown, in spite of Japan's oh
ection, Tokyo dispatches say that Ja
pan will now address another friendly
note to China. "Friendly." somehow or
other, irresistibly reminds us of Mr.
Bryan's parting "God bless you" to Mr.
Wilson.—New York American.
El— ■ Tes&C
Searchlight gte
WAR DOCTORS ORGANIZE
The doctors engaged in the Red Cross
service in Europe are planning an or
ganization which will bo of great influ
ence In the establishment or peace and
good understanding.' it is to be known
as the Brotherhood of Physicians and
will, include members from every na
tion. It will be devoted entirely to the
promotion of relief of human suffering
without regard to national differences.
Dr. J. J. Metzler, of Rockefeller In
stitute, New York. Is to be its first
president. He is now formulating the
text of the invitations to be extended
to prospective members. The unttv of
purpose of the medical profession" has
been unbroken throughout the war.
Each member has given his service for
the relief of human suffering and it is
believed that this common benevolent
purpose in one great profession can be
used as a lever for lessening the preju
dices which will remain even after hos
tilities are over.
WHERE DEMON RUM IS EX
TRENCHED
The trustees of Sailors' Snug Har
bor, the valuable ten New York City
blocks extending from Eighth to
Eleventh streets, and from Third ave
nue to University Place, have an
nounced their intention to close out
all saloon leases as fast as they ex
pire. This action will not immediate
-1 ly create that much dry territory in
I New York, however, for there are
| many long term ground leases to be
I considered, and on such property
there are buildings erected by the
lessees in which liquor is sold, and no
change can be made during the life
of these ground leases. The Chris
tian Herald.
Our Daily Laugh j
TIME TO GEO*
BUSY.
Dancing In- ~~j
structor: 11 Isn~ /® -4 [
! time for me to In- x J
vent another jw
Friend: Think
Dancing In- >Mll
structor: Yes, I jM wV
understand there IjU
are two towns Em
j dancing my last *
one alike.
VERY CLOSE.
How did It hap
m e up on the tele-
MY MEW YEAR'S WISH
By Wine Dinger
If one wee wish I could express,
And have that wish eome true.
I'd wish that each and everyone
(And that would take in you)
Might have a New Year full of joy.
And Incomes of the sort
That Uncle Sam demands shall be
' Covered by long report.
By Frederic J. Haskin
AFTER wrangling through three
sessions over il, the Democratic
senatorial caucus finally de
cided to refer the question of cloture
lo a nonpartisan committee. There
it will probably repose for a long
lime, but sooner or later it Is sure to
come up again, for It always has a
few ardent supporters in the Senate.
Now that senators are elected by
popular vote, these agitators are as
serting that they will make a national
issue of cloture and appeal to the
common-sense of the people. This
being the case, the people might, like
to know what cloture is.
Cloture means the act of shutting:,
and in this country it refers to the
mouths of senators. It would not
shut them arbitrarily or abruptly, or
in any undignified way, but it would
set some limit of time upon their
speaking.
The United States senate is one of
the few parliamentary bodies in the
world which has absolute freedom of
debate, so-called. In the House of
Representatives, debate may be
brought to an ehd at any time by
moving the prev'ious question. Nearly
all parliamentary bodies, including
most of our State and municipal
legislatures, have some similar rule.
The British parliament formerly had
unlimited debate which was finally
brought to an end by the efforts of
Mr. Gladstone. In the French parlia
ment the closing of the debate is
by one or more of the mem
bers crying out, "La Cloture!" Ile
question is then put by the president
and voted upon immediately. In the
German Reichstag a vote upon cloture
may be had upon the demand or
thirty members. In Austria-Hungary
cloture must be put to the vote upon
the demand of any member. Belg
ium, Denmark, the Netherlands,
Portugal, Spain and Switzerland are
other countries whose parliaments
make use of cloture upon the demand
of anywhere from one to ten mem
bers.
Cloture is opposed in tlie Senate
upon the grounds that absolute free
dom of debate should be retained in
one house of congress and that it
strengthens the minority, which is an
effective check upon the tyranny of
the majority. In the Senate every
one may have his full say, every jot of
material and information is brought
to bear upon the subject: It cannot be
"steam»rollered," no matter how
strong the preponderant party.
The senators who have demanded
<ioture, point out with some indigna
tion that so.-called freedom of debate
is somewhat less beneficent in prac
tice than In theory. Instead of in
suring careful deliberation and dis
cussion, It has given rise to the
notorious filibuster which enables a
few senators to defeat, a measure by
simply talking until Congress ad'-
journs or everyone gives up In dis
gust. By talking in relays, moving
to adjourn or take a recess, making
the point of no quorum and other
dilatory tactics, a very few deter
mined and long-winded senators, can
-hold out against all the rest.
THE STATE FROM W TO DW
A world's champion has been dis
covered in Hazleton. Young Iceland
Gordon Schweitzer is the speed-king
who claims he is the fastest man in
the world on the cinder track. In
fact, he does more than that—he ad
mits his wonderful ability. He says he
can do the hundred yard dash in nine
and two-fifth seconds, clipping a fifth
off the world's record, and at other
[distances he is equally good. Some
cruel individuals might think this
young man Schweitzer to be a
"cheese," but it is hard to think that
when he believes so thoroughly in him
self.
Usually one does not look to the
driver of a pretzel wugon for subjects
about which to write romantic trage
dies. If there is anything that is un
romantic, It is a pretzel. After having
his skull fractured as the result of an
accident, William Schmidt, this Phila
delphia pretzel maker, stuck to his
wagon and delivered to customers for
six hours. It is thought that he fell
from his wagon In a faint and was
run over by his own wagon.
Two young men living in Erio are
afloat on a huge ice-floe on Lake Erie.
They were skating near the shore
when the cake broke off and was swept
rapidly away by a 40-mile-an-hour
wind. They were soon lost to view,
and the last report stated that a tug
was chasing the Ice down the lake.
"Pigs is pigs," all rtght, but this is
the first time we liave heard of pigs
acting like wolves and bears. Mrs.
Charles, of T-,alrdsvllle. keeps a large
, flock jif chickens and turkeys and re
cently \ many have been disappearing.
CLOTURE
The filibuster is a truly heroic exer
cise and one surrounded by many
glorious legends. Senators have been
known to talk for eleven or twelve
hours with only an occasional pause
for a cup of tea. They have been
known to read Huckleberry Finn and
the Pickwick Papers and to tell the
stories of their lives and describe the
beauties of their native land from end
to end. All of which shows that our
senators are a robust crew, but does
not seem to have much to do with
real freedom of speech. Instead of
promoting fair discussion it makes it
dangerous for the majority to start a
debate lest it never end. It has en
abled minority senators to secure the
passage of an undesirable amendment
by the threat of a filibuster. Instead
of promoting mature deliberation, it.
has brought into being a parliament
ary lactic about as intellectual as
stopping a freight train by piling
bricks on the track.
The evils and absurdities of the
filibuster can scarcely be denied by
anyone, but those who are opposed to
an unlimited majority rule declare
that freedom of debate in the Senate
must be preserved at any cost. A
measure may be rushed through as
far as the Senate, they say, but tnere
It must receive a very thorough over
hauling indeed. The Senate, accord
ing to this theory, is a sort of check
upon the ruthless, impetuous speed
with which the House does business.
It should be remembered in this
connection, however, that the journey
of a bill from the brain of some con
gressman to the statute book is a
long and hazardous one in any case.
First, it must be submitted to the
House of Representatives by the
member who has drawn it. By the
i House It is referred to a committee.
If it is a bill of any importance, the
committee summons experts and
holds hearings, often taking testi
mony, literally, by the wagonload.
From the committee of the House the
bill will very often be sent to the
President or to the executive head of
the department to which it applies.
For example, the parcel post measure
was doubtless scanned by the post
master general and his assistants long
before it oame back to the House. The
bill will then be reported to the House
by the committee, where it will be de
bated very fully—even though not in
definitely—and so finally it will come
to the Senate.
Here It must once more be grilled
by a committee: everyone who is sup
posed to know anything about it must
be called upon for an opinion; and
then, as a last and final ordeal, after
It has passed through months of
careful consideration by four or five
different bodies, it faces the unlimited
debate of the Senate.
The flood of measures introduced
into the congress of the United States
is like a troop of soldiers charging a
long series of trenches. The ones
that get to the last ditch not only
must have considerable merit but a
whole lot of luck, and in that last
trench stands the big gun of filibuster
which may blow them to pieces, in
the hands of a single man.
They were finally traced to the pig
pen, where it was found that Mrs.
Porcus and her daughters had been
dining sumptuously.
Slightly more than one million dollars
have been appropriated by the coun
cil in Reading, to run ♦he city for tho
year 1916. This seems reasonable
when one considers that in a certain
university town of a hundred thou
sand, with but 3,000 students, it is
estimated that at least one million is
spent with the merchants of the town
by the students annually.
Leap-year will soon bo ushered in,
and tlien, you may believe, will tho
wall-flowers come into their own.
Then will they have an opportunity to
show their more fortunate sisters that
all Is not gold that glitters, and all
are not simple that look so. We know
that, none of our readers are wall
flowers, so we are not afraid of hurting
anybody's feelings by printing this.
The Johnstown Chamber of Com
merce had ladies at their noon lunch
eon yesterday, but in spite of that
fact, everything was run off on sched
ule time and the guests were summar
ily dismissed at 1.30 along with the
others.
MAKING A DATE! ON
A DATE STKAIIKn
The raising of dates is the greatest
industry of the Euphrates valley.
Autumn Is a feverish time among the
date merchants. Then the dates are
ripe and are loaded onto tho ocean
steamers at Busreh. *nd the boats race
down the Persian Gulf, across the In
dian Ocenn, up the Bed Sea. along the
Mediterranean and across the Atlantic,
to be the first to arrive with the de
licious fruit for our Thanksgiving
table. Once' I sailed directly from
Husreh to New York on one of the an
nual date steamers a Journey of
forty-two days.—The Christian Herald.
lEtmring (Etjat
In spite of tlie fact tliat the interest
and dividend period of many concernj
which formerly made payments on th>
first of the year has been changed, it 18
safe to sa£ that an amount of nion<*
not equaled in years will be put into
circulation in Harrlsburg to-morrow.
To begin with, there is a large amount
of city and counly indebtedness on
i (. h (oupons fall due to-morrow and
quite a large amount of industrial art«i
ot er securities held by Harrlsburgers
and their institutions have payments
due on January X. Business transac
ts due on the first of the year con
tribute quite a good bit, more than
most, people think, according to one
of the city's bankers. Anil then there
whlri,",'i,?! er ? US Private obligations
ani on ~ 0 . f om ,ho flrst " f the
Of ™,rl Payments will be made.
J ' J he holiday will prevent
. rCa ' ly al,d the cn «h Is
nn nf ti Pl s °t° speak, for the closing
these affairs. No two bankers
nhS.l? 1, V ? the same estimate
in ."I" 0 ' 1 ,non ey Will be paid
out in Harrlsburg to-morrow, but thev
''' •! eo "' «° b « I" high figures with
sicferaWe S ° " mUBt bc c ° 11 "
* ♦ •
~w as "weeding out" day in
n«r»ir.,?i , ''', ty and county offices
" where present incum-
♦ ® Way ,0 ncw officials or
subordinates on Monday incident to
changes of administration. Clerks and
?n™" g^,P K °. r u sma " "house clean
ing " the i r d( ' Bks and old letters
s ° onc k,nd or another
'hrown away or dumped Into the
waste baskets. Kven in the olllces
! e V'r e w be 110 changes the
Deads of departments and their clerks
cleared the decks and closed their
year - The official year
ends .Monday and as to-morrow will be
generally observed as a holiday the
office statfs to-day finished up all the
odds and ends of business for 1915.
♦ • ♦
< apitol Hill has been seeing more
twenty-dollar bills lately than the
average man runs across in half a life
time. The reason is that this is the
period of the year when automobile
licenses are taken out, and as Father
Penn wllKnot take anything but cash,
eel titled checks or money orders, a
good many owners of cars send him
twenties, especially as a twenty pays
;° r a type of car that is in general use.
The result is that every day the State
Treasury that often goes through a
day without actual cash but thousands
and thousands of dollars represented
by checks has been overrun with hank
notes. The "yellowbucks," however,
are pleasant to look at.
• « •
The ruins of the houses in South
1' ourth street which were wiped out.
by fire last autumn are serving ad
mirably for advertising matter these
days. The other day twenty-one dis
tinct advertisements were counted on
one building alone and there were
signs of varied hue on all the others.
It is a rare space that the shrewd ad
vertising man lets go unadorned.
There are some automobile owners
in Harrisburg who are progressive to
a degree. Under the law every car
run on January 1 must display a
iicense for 1916, but cars may not bo
run in 1915 with only 1916 licenses.
Hence some owners have attached
their yellow 1916 licenses to the backs
of their blue 1915 tags. The new one.<A
are longer than those in use now an<^
there is a promise of the new year in
the yellov edges of the 1916 crop
when they are displayed together.
The sleet storm which wrecked so
many trees about the citv and dam
aged some of the finest in Capitol Park
was the cause of the smashing of one
of the squirrel hotels in the State
House park. The house was located
on the last sturdy limb of one of the
smaller trees near the Mexican monu
ment, but when the sleet came and
encased the limb and the house in ice
it was too much and the whole busi
ness fell to the ground. The squirrels
seem to have escaped.
The Harrisburg Public Library,
which will close its second year on
Monday, will probably show a total
circulation this year equal to two
books for every person within the cor
porate limits of Harrisburg. The cir
culation last year was considerably
over 100,000. This year will beat it.
John A. Scott, of the State Work
men's Compensation Hoard, has been
ill with grip at his home in Indiana.
Mr. Scott was taken ill a week ago
and has been unable to attend meet
ings of the board, which is preparing
to launch the compensation system to
morrow.
WELL KNOWN |
—F. P. Truesdale. of Uniontown,
will have charge of extensive railroad
improvements in that place.
—Thomas IT. lliggins, who is figur
ing in the mayoralty contest, at Ches
ter. is a former postmaster of that city.
—Mayor Blankenburg, of Philadel
phia. lias declined a New Year's re
ception.
—John Ellis, the aged Pottstown
inventor, celebrated his ninety-fourth
birthday a few days ago.
—William D. Ileebner, controller
elect of Montgomery county, has re
turned from Florida.
—-The Rev. Francis E. Grunert, of
Staten Island, has been appointed prin
cipal of Nazareth Academy.
DO YOU KNOW
That Harrisburg boiler plates arc
used in many manufacturing es
tablishments?
HISTORIC HAItRINBURG
Zachary Taylor visited here early in
his career as an army officer.
WIIV GET KIC'H mK K SIICEMES
WORK FOB IHG INVKSTOHS ASIII
FAIL FOH SMALL ONES
"Those who labor hard for thotr
money and who luive a still more ar
(luouH strufffflfc In Mving small sums,
says a banker in the January Ameri
can Magazine, "naturally fall easy vic
tims In many instances to the desire
for sudden riches. Rut the fatal error
lies In supposing that the person of
small means can afford to take tb»
chance If he or she loses they lose all.
The largo capitalist and the profes
sional money-lender have the law of
averages working with them. They
afford to sink money into twenty
tures if tliev make s thousand pe •
cent, on one. They arc protected by
the law of chance, the average safety
of their investments depending upon no
single rlßk.
•■Risk Ik a necessary part In busi
ness- but should be borno by the
strong, never by the weak. The pro
moter who talks about the small in
vestor being given the same oppor
tunities as the very rich is indulging
In bunk.' He always forgets to say
that a safe 5 per cent, bond or a 6 per
cent, mortgage, 'cold. Impersonal de
positories for funds.' will at the end of
five years have paid their ownerp 30
per cent to 35 per cent, (allowing for
compound Interest), and that the vast
majority of new ventures with big
promises will have paid nothing.
"Onlv the man who can afford to
take risks has any business tr. look
for an Investment that will make him
rich <julckl}\"