Daily Kennebec journal., 1894-02-03
TO SPAN THE HUDSON.
Bridge Bill to Again Be Taken Up in
Congress.
Why ihs PresiSsas Vetoed IA ee..er Busi-
aesy Outlook In West.


York bridge bill is to be taken up again
and passed through the two houses of con-
gress. ii it is properly drawn, perhaps
President Cleveland will not veto it, as he
did the first measure for that purpose. 1t
il notorious here that the New York bridge
scheme has had the support Of a powerful
lobby, and this is one of the reasons why
the president interposed his veto. Among
the people who w6re sure to profit by the
placing Of the bill on the statute books
were certain Tammany politicians fer whom
Mr. Cleveland has no love. 1t is also
known that a member Of the lobby who
had been carried In the scheme for q time
and then dropped on account OF a disagree
ment concerning his pay placed in the pres
ident's hands the names of all the persons
who were to receive money in case the plan
succeeded. This enabled the president to
fudge the scheme more as to the methods
employed in its promotion than in its mer-
its. 1t also gave HIM chance to strike a
blow at his enemies.
Uses of the Lobby.
The fact that lobby was employed to
push the bridge bill through congress does
not necessarily mean that It is II bad or
fraudulent scheme Some of the most
worthy legislative projects have to enlist
the lobby before they can hope TO succeed
in congress- As good a scheme as the New
York and Brooklyn bridge, which has con-
ferred many blessings upon the people OF
10th cities, could not get through congress
without the help Of the lobby. A quarter
of u million Of dollars in currency was
brought to the capital and dsbursed by
the agents of the company, and in that case
also it happened that II list of the men to
whom the money had been paid was fur
bished tho president. The biggest lobby
secn in Washington in recent years was that
employed by the Chicago people to get
their souvenir coin bill through congress
Every professional lobbyist in town was
employed on that scheme, and it is known
to n certainty that but for the work of the
lobby the World $ fair would have had to
get along without the $500, 900 appropria
tion of silver coins. The expense was not
great, considering the amount of money in
volved Perhaps $4,000 was disbursed to
the lobby Five or six men earned soGOl
each in that job and quite number small
er sums. There is some curiosity here as
to how the Worlds fair bookkeepers made
their accounts balance without disclosing
these items of expense.
The Wheels Of Progress.
The New York and Jersey City bridge
scheme will probably be revived and ought
to be. 1t has long been n matter of amaze
ment TO residents OF other parts of the
country that no bridge was thrown across
the Hudson Chicago would have had that
stream bridged Il dozen years ago. In
bridging the Mississippi with the magnil-
IL Inv hr Z
ST. Louis effected work of equal magni-
tude. New York, as the greatest city ON
. the continent has been woefu1ly dilatory in
making great public improvements, as is
shown by the fact that she has permitted
all these years to 20 by without a bridge
connecting her with the vast west. The
bill which congress passed and the presi
dent vetoed had the objection that it con-
ferred an enormously valuable franchise
upon corporation that was using it for
speculative purposes. But an objection of
this sort ought not to be permitted to stand
in the way of a great public improvement
and to block the wheels of progress.
While congress is quarreling about the
tariff and the country is anxiously awaiting
the moment when certainty and confidence
may take the place of doubt and timidty,
ually rallying from the depressed state in
which it was plunged by last summers
panic. Many reports to this effect reach
the capital. Today, for instance, Mr.. Heath
editor of Kansas agricultural paper, was
here on business. The outlook in the
west is most encouraging" he said. 1--WE
have our fingers on the pulse Of the west,
and we know it is beating strong and regu-
lar ti,a I ha do ys
the advertiser on the other, we are able 10
judge the temper of the people and of the
manufacturers and dealers rs well. We
know the farmers have money from the
way in which they renew their subscrip-
tions and plank down the cash. We know
the manufacturers are all right from the
fact that our advertising contracts for the
ensuing year are greater in the aggregate
than they have ever been before Adver-
tisers are the shrewdest men in the world
They will not put out their money unless
they know they are going TO get it back.
Their confidence in tue general prosperity
of the people and in the resumption of pros
perity is the best sign have seen for the
year 1884,
\ Paradise Tor Farmers.
Mr. Heath calls attention to the fact that
III u very lew years oAistnuIist VIII pS IL iuii
fledged state and without doubt one of the
most prosperous commonwealths in til.
Union. II have just returned from tour
through that country" he says, "and was
amazed at what | saw there--thriving
towns and villages, neat farmhouses. every
body hard ut work order coming rapidly
out of chaos. Oklahoma is destined TO be
rich and prosperous, She has as rich soil
as the greediest of farmers would want to
run a plow through. II is well watered.
The climate is delightful, barring "A few
weeks Of excessively hot weather in mid
summer. The people of Oklahoma can
grow all sorts of crops. from corn 20 cotton
The old question whether corn or cotton Is
king doesn't worry them there. beeaus,
they have both, and they are Il good pair oi
kings TO draw to, especially when you cef
fill with every other desirable crop and with
all kinds of fruits. Oklahoma will make .
great state Our people in the west an
generally prosperous Just as fast us oul
farmers learn to finance as well as to farm
10 avoid running into debt, to house thesl
farm machinery when through with it il
stead of leaving it in the open air 10 go L
pieces, and, In short, to apply TO the bust
hess OF farming the same rules of common
sense which men have to apply TO me,ean
tile purSgitS they get out of thedumpS anC