The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-08-10
He HAD To co.
Plutocrat Founders of the Chi
cagO University
Ask Prof. Bemis to Resign His
PrOfessOrShip,
Because He Was Devoted to the
Peoples Interest
AND SCORED TRUSTS.
observation-disclosures
by Doubtful Methods
Felt That a Tender Spot Had
Been Touched.
AND SCORED TRUSTS.

CHICAGO, Aug. 10.-Edward W. Be-
mis-, professor of political economy in
the Chicago university, sewers his rela-
tions with that institution this week.
Prof Bemis has "resigned" because his
resignation was desired. His scalp dan
giles at the belt of monopoly. Because
he opposed the greed of corporations
and argued against the lawlessness of
trusts, his chair will be filed by an
other.
The iesue raised by the case of Prof
Bemis is already fruitful topic in all the
seats of learning. There is a crisis at
hand among educators It is the old story
of capital against labor, only now it has
invaded the universities. The case of
Prof Ely of the University of Wisconsin
is an illustration. He was charged with
being a Socialist and writing against
the present order of things. He was
tried and vindicated. Prof. Bemis is
studied under him at Johns Hopkins
university.
Prof. Bemis is a quiet man, persistent,
but not aggressive, and hard worker.
He is recognized among economists as
one of the wheel horses in the work of
gathering material for the revision of
the principles of economic science on
inductive methods. He is not known by
any one as a crusader against estab-
lished order. He believes that such
natural monopolies as gas. water and
street transportation should be owned
and operated by aud for the public,
though he does not hold that the change
should come at once, or, perhaps, ever
universally.
The Chicago university was founded
and has been richly endowed by John
-, A M
to it. Rockefeller has made $75.000000
in thirty years. The methods by which
this great wealth was acquired have
been strikingly presented in Henry d.
Lloyd's book, "Wealth Against Com
monwealth" Mr.. Lloyd showed it to be
the product of merciless industrial war
fare lawless conspiracy, and abuse of
municipal franchise. MIR. Yerkes, the
street railroad magnate. is another bene-
factor of the university He has given
$5OOO0 to the university in the form of
a telescope Mr.. Yerkes kas made $1O,-
100000 in ten years. 1t was said at the
time that in giving the telescope Mr..
Yerkes desired to concentrate the gaze
of the people on the heavens and away
from the streets.
The resentment against Prof. Bemis
was aroused by his sturdy condemnation
of the abuse of municipal franchise. He
holds strong convictions regarding the
robbery of the public by corporations and
city authorities. He has made long
personal investigation of economic prob
| lens, as presented in the larger cities,
and he has given his convictions to stu
dents at the university, and to the big
university extension following in this
part of the state. He did not indorse
the Pullman strike. but he does favor
| labor unions. After the strike
] h. IAIi od fn q
number of millionaires in DR.. Barrow's
| church, and criticised the strikers. "The
| railroads, too,' said he, "are law break
ers, and must be made to obey the inter-
state commerce act They are, in fact.
as much law breakers as the strikers"
At this point Marvin Hughitt, president
of the Chicago & Northwestern railway,
stepped up to the pulpit and shouted: 81
consider that language an outrage. To
! imply that the railroads cannot come into
court with clean hands is infamous"
This was doubtless one reason for his
dismissal.
Prof. Bemis is popular with the stu
dents, who all sympathize with him. He
was seen today by a correspond
ent He said that he preferred not to
speak of his interviews with the univer-
| sity authorities, but as the report had
! spread that he was radical in his eco
nomicsl views, he would say that he was
in substantial agreement with such
economists as Seligman, Ely, Andrews
and Walker, though not going go far in
some directions Prof, Ely. He be-
lieved that a university should be
in close touch with the labor movement
and municipal and monopoly problems,
and that it is true conservatism to intro
duce factory legislation, more honest aud
just local taxation, and such methods of
city government and monopoly control as
prevail in Glasgow, Birmingham and
others of the best governed European
cities.
As one of the organizers and active
workers of the civic federation and Sec
retary of its municipal committee. Prof.
Bemis has been asked to investigate the
merits of several important new fran
chises to streetcar railroad and gas COM
panies, and has taken strong ground
against further reckless and corrupt
granting of valuable franchises without
compensation to the city or provision for
city ownership at the end of a moderate
period He has written a monograph of
the American Economic association, and
some articles in the reviews on the re-
suits of city ownership of gas
works in the United States. He
holds that, on the whole, with pos
sIbly one exception, the results have been
favorable and believes such ownership
should gradually extend and that for the
present street Car franchises should be
granted on similar conditions to those in
Toronto, where the city secures four cent