The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1896-12-24

feeding the world The wheat-fields {
the West are constantly sending fort
three streams of supplies of the 'sstaff {
, life" One goes towards the Paclfi
coast for shipment East another te
wards New Orleans, and still anothe
towards the Atlantic seaboad.
A man whose official position In tn
revenue service enables him to knoy
What he was talking about, told us tina
the manufacture of intoxicating llquor
is increasing. He said one on the out
side has no Idea what Is going on. On,
reason, he said, for the increase in th,
manufacture is the low price of grain
While grain is so cheap it is possible
to make the liquor cheap, and with .
rise in the price of grain the cost Of
producing liquor would be correspond
ingly higher, and so less quantity
would be manufactured.
| The people of North Carolina are be-
coming much interested IN the ques
| tion If better fee school facilities, and
the Legislature will doubtless be asked
TO take steps looking to lengthening
the term of the free schools. 1t is a
matter of much importance and the
people of the State are so regarding it.
The private school interests in the
State seem to be better than for some
time. The academies and other pri-
vate schools are fourishing in almost
every county and community, and it is
proper that the State improve the free
schools as much as the private schools
improve, and more if possible.
Recently before the New York Su-
preme Court an attorney remarked i'll
IN extenuation OF an acknowledges
weakness of his client, "The best of
men get drunk" The Judge quickly
annouced his dissent. saying, ''The best
# men du not YET drunk If there ev.
- WIS such a time it has gone by il
his and all other civilized communl
ties"
A similar incident occurred in the
Criminal court in Halifax two weeks
go A lawyer was questioning wit
less as to the character of another per-
son concerned in the case. The wit
ness eaid that he had seen the man in
question drunk. Whereupon the law
yer asked, "Scme of the best men IN
The county get drunk, don't they?" To
which we believe the witness assented,
but there are many people in the coun-
New York Supreme Court. "The best
people do not get drunk"
The subject has sometimes been dis
.Overed as to whether or not this Is
christian nation. OF course it is so con-
.lered, but when we read from the
sords Of the Wise Man: "When the
iyntenus are in authority the people
ejoice but when the wicked peareth
ule the people mourn" and listen at
he wall If distress that Is coming up
r,m so many parts of the country, it
would seem that in many places the
wicked are in authority. Of the seven
tv millions OF people in this country
more than twenty-five millions are
members of some one of the Christian
denominations, and it Is estimated that
AS many as fifty-four millions are NOM
inally christian, being under the direct
Influence of the denomination.
But 1t Is with this question as with
all others with which we have to do.
Seeming to be and being are quite diff
ferent things. Many of the men who
bear rule in this nation to-day are bet
ter than they are supposed by their po-
litical enemies but far too many are
men of open and blatant wickednees,
such as ought to turn them down from
places of position and trust.
cit is very kind you madam, said
the tramp, "to give me such fine din