davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
WHERE Is ACETYLENE.

Three or four months ago the papers
teemed with accounts Of process of
producing a new illuninant that was
to drive the gas companies out Of bust
ness, or, at the least, oblige them to re-
lax their charges, assumed, because of
their monopoly, to be eXtortionate. Ed
itorials filled the papers descanting on
the new and wonderful discovery Of
acetylene, and an expectant public
waited anxiously for the coming of the
man with his cylinders filled with the
new gas, with it's intense light and
nominal cost, to be attached to the gas
not. and a silence has fallen on the
subject that would be painful were it
not for the noise the cathode rays are
making and the centering of atten-
ton on them. That has happened
which the G o b expected. 1t was
the only ore of all the papers Of the
country that discredited the claims
made for the discovery that calcium
carbide could be produced as a mer-
chantable commodity at the price CIV
en-, or at any price which would make
the gas cheaper than coal gas. Subse-
quent developments confirm the posi-
ton taken by the G o b e. The course
Of acetylene is worth noting.
The, discovery, like so many others,
fell into the hands of thrifty propoot-
ers. The process was forthwith made
a monopoly by patent right. A stock
company was formed to exploit it.
Acetylene stock began to be men
toned in the market reports. It's price
went mounting skyward. The gratui-
tous advertising it had received, the
monopoly claimed for it, the rapid ad-
vance in price. made it a lure that
spectators and investors hastened to
embrace. But, before this, the promot-
ers had played it fine" on the appre
tensions of the holders of gas stocks.
These, alarmed at the new opponent
whose coming the press had so loudly
heralded, became anxious to concIiate
the cenquering hero of the gas field.
The thrifty promoters played craftily
on these fears They received enor-
nous sums from gas companies for
the right to USE the process. The
cupidity of the gas ,men aided them.
II acetylene could be produced from
calcium carbide. 'cossttins So a ten, and
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
JEFFERsoN,s BIRTHDAY,

The National Association Of Demo-
cratic Clubs purposes to observe the
birthday of the father of Democracy
in America by visit to Monticello. A
circular states that the president and
cabinet, Democratic senators and rep
resentatives and many distinguished
Democrats in the nation have been in
vited to take part in the excursion, and
a feature of the occa asion will be an
address by ex-Gov. William E. Rus
sell, responded to by Senator Daniel.
All organizations affiliated with the
national association are urged ''to i'm
prove the opportunity by general re-
currence to those sacred doctrines
taught by the founder, in some common
and solemn celebration of the birthday
of Thomas Jefferson, thus renewing
their faith and demonstrating their
devotion to the fundamental principles
Of our party
We hope that every Democratic sena-
tor and representative, wearing the
badge Of that party, will accept the
invitation to go on this excursion. We
hope that Mr.. Russell will present to
them in his address some Jeffersonian
principles Of government. Just now,
and for the past three years, such in
struetion has been sadly needed. Stand
ing in one of the corridors Of the hall
Of congress is a heroic statue of JEFF
he
made animate with the soul Of the
great Democrat, one can imagine the
statue striding in Indignation into the
senate when the five Judas Iscariots"
were. throttling Democracy, ''blight-
ing the councils Of the brave" and ar
raigning them for their reereaney. One
can imagine him appearing in the
house or senate at almost any session
in recent years and reminding men
who called themselves Democrats that
the legal ratio of coinage must conform
to the commercial ratio If it would be
Democratic and right. We can imag-
inc him telling senators and repre-
sentatives, cowed by the power of or
contaminated by contact with the cor
rupting touch of protection, that gov
ernments are instituted among men
that they may enjoy life, liberty and
the pursuit of happiness. not to enrich
a few at the common cost.
Yes, there is need of baptism afresh
in Jeffersonianism. Some Of the SEN
ators and representatives who may.
who should. go TO the tomb of Jeffer-,
son need not only baptism. but thor
ough bathing in it. And all over the
land are Democrats who know not
Jefferson, who may not know Ham,
ilton, but who hold the latters con-
cept of government; men who believe
that the mere fat of congress can
create values. others who believe that
government can make money"
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
VALUE OF A WASTE pRoDUCT.

In general way the public is familiar
with the fact that some of the most re-
markable industrial advances of recent
times consist in the utilization of waste
products In every department of in
dustry profits are reckoned today by
the total of small economies that 1t is
possible to effect. The cutting off of
small fraction Of a cent here and there
can be turned into comfortable divi-
dends on a large capital In the same
way, where cost of production remains
fixed and prices are either stationary
or constantly decreasing, handsome
gains are still realized by turning into
commodities of high commercial value
that which was formerly thrown away
as q worthless waste product No in
stance OF this is more striking than
the utilization of cotton seed. 1t is not
SO many years since the seed of the
cotton plant, after the fiber had been
separated from it, was regarded as
simply a nuisance, and the disposition
of it was in itself considerable of a
problem. Today cotton seed and
its products are so valuable that plant
ers are actually developing and culti-
waiting what is called ''bald-headed cot
ton, bearing no lint and valuable for
it's seed alone.
In a recent article on this subject
in Bradstreet's it is stated that about
two-thirds in weight of a given yield
of cotton is seed and one-third lint Of
1900 pounds Of ordinary seed, accord
ing to a bulletin of the federal de-
partment Of agriculture, the products
are as follows: Short staple lint, 20
pounds; cotton seed hulls, S91 pounds;
kernels, 1,0S9 pounds. These kernels
yield 289 pounds of crude oil and 500
pounds Of oil cake. The oil is now
in very general use, both for domestic
purposes and for mixing with lard.
The oil cake is excellent animal food,
and the meal, as a fertilizer. is worth
from $50 to $25 per ton. In 1860, the
value Of the products of the cotton
seed industry was $741, 600. In 1894, it
is estimated that the value had reached
$50, ,000, ,000
These figures show the amazing ex-
tent and value Of the uses to which
what was formerly a purely waste
product may be put. 1t is even possi-
BILE, as has been indicated, that in the
future the price of the baled cotton may
be a less considerable item in the in
come of the farmer than the value Of
the seed. The process of turning such
by-preducts into cash, which has long
been one of the principal studies Of
manufacturing industry, has been too
little applied to agriculture. The great
est advance made is in the case Of
cotton seed. It's utilization has added
many millions to the national wealth,
and the process Of which it is an illus
tration has only just begun.
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05

they could sell the gas at present fig
ures, there were millions in it."
But some one has overreached him
self. There is a hitch In the process
sion of the expected millions. Cal
cium carbide cannot be produced for
the promised cost Of Sc a ton. 1t is
selling now at from 25 cents to so cents
per pound. Other patents stand in
the way, and have to be taken in ION
the ground floor" Even at 500 the gas
would cost about what it now costs to
produce gas. Then it is found to be
highly explosive. Insurance companies
refuse risks on buildings lighted with
it. The game seems to be near it's
close. Some have made big money,
others have lost it; visions of untold
wealth fade away; hopes of escape
from the gas monopolists die out.
Acetylene joins the list of great pos
sibilities much marred."
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05

themselves to anything they wanted,
and enjoy his hospitality at their pleas
ure. This is the policy which we have
been pursuing altogether too long. The
foreign-born element of our popula-
ton, as has been shown conclusively,
is in many respects better material
for good citizenship than the native
American stock. 1t is not the differ
ence between the foreigner and the
native that is important, but the fact
that along with these people whom
we desire to receive come shiploads of
men and women from the foreign
slums, who have neither the ability nor
the desire to earn an honest living. A
proper inquiry into the antecedents
and character of~evefy immigrant, as a
condition precedent to his admission
would exclude no worthy man, while
it would protect Aus against the pauper
and the criminal classes. Nobody
wants them, and nobody has ever as
signed good reason why they should
not be kept out. Having, as usual, de-
layed action until NECESSITY presses us,
we may now expect the question of re-
stricting and regulating immigration
to become prominent once more
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
THE BEER MUG MUST GO.

The protest offered to the school
board by the ladies of the w. C. t. U.
against the use of beer mugs and bot
ties as models for the pupils in draw
ing is excellent In it's way, but there
is not enough of it. Why stop at beer
mugs? The insidious snuff jar, which
comes in a gorgeous assortment Of col
ors, is sometimes used as a model by
drawing teachers, and so is the loath-
some tobacco pouch and herepugnant
meerschaum While these articles
may not be actually in use in the
drawing classes of our public schools
at the present moment, yet as long as
they are commonly used by drawing
teachers IN other places they might
at any moment creep Into our midst"
if steps are not taken to prevent it,
Forewarned is forearmed. Our chill
dren must be preserved from such in
fluences.
In reforms of this kind, however,
care should always be taken that the
innocent do not suffer for the guilty.
There are certain quaint jugs and jars
of Flemish stone, most beautiful in
coloring and design which on their
native heath are used for beer, but
which in this country more frequently
serve as chocolate pots or water pitch
ers. If 1t can be shown that any given
jug of this exquisite ware has been
guiltless of containing the dangerous
beverage, the fact that similar ones
have held beer in Flanders ought not
to prejudice the fair-minded against
their use for water-color studies.
Then there is the possibility of con-
founding the brazen beer bottle with
the innocuous receptacle of ginger pop;
but the danger of injustice here could
be met by proviso that no such bot
tie should be drawn or painted unless
it was labeled, the label being Of such
a character as to constitute a clean
bill of health for the bottle.
A friend Of peace has suggested that
the temperance ladies and the school
board might compromise in the man.
rer obtaining in some Eastern cities,
where works of art purchased by the
city fathers and criticised on the score
Of propriety by certain citizens have
been decorously draped. Might not
the beer mugs be put into pantalets?
This suggestion is unworthy of consid-
Grafton for an instant. The matter is
not one which admits Of any such
halfway measures. The next step
in the right direction will be
to Danish marine views from
our school-room walls, for salt water
provokes what Chimmie Fadden calls
first" and everybody knows that
marine views often contain schooners.
The combination is suggestive and
reprehensfble.
The lessons upon the physical effects
of alcohol and tobacco, in as far as
they are satisfied with facts, have
done and may do much good in the
schools; but if; by the efforts of the
w. c. T. u. studies ITO Promote the
Development of a Sense of Humor"
might also become a part of the cur
riculum, it is certain that their own
body would ultimately profit vastly
thereby.
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05

of way. Wheelmen must look out for
them, not they for the wheels. Ordi-
nary caution, slowing down at cross
ings, bell sounding it's warnings, a
limiting of speed to the less-frequented
streets; club rules supplementing city
ordinances; cooperation with the po
lice In enforcing them by giving infor-
cidents, fend off hostile restrictive
laws, add to the pleasure of wheeling,
and, what Is not of less value, insure
wheelmen in the general recognition
and enjoyment of their rights.
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
PUT ON THE SCREWS.

We hope that the expressed intention
of the interstate commission to put the
screws CH heavy shippers of freight,
as well as upon railroad companies, in
reasonable rates, will be carried out.
While it is true that the railways have
been ready to offend in granting re-
bates and making determinations, and
while the first thing to be done is to
compel their compliance with the law,
1t is none the less true that they have
been aided anc abetted and in many
cases obliged, practically, to violate it,
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
sOMETHING WRONG.

Excellent work has been done by the
state department of labor in the mat
ter Of investigating child labor In ST.
Paul. We have heretofore dealt ex-
tensively with this subject, and desire
to congratulate the public upon the
general observance, in this city of the
law relating to the employment Of chill
dren, and upon the strong corroborat-
i've evidence of the wisdom and neces-
sity Of such legislation that is furnished
by the facts. To us the most signifi-
cant figures in the report of the in
spectors in st. Paul are those which
show that nearly one-half the total
number Of children under sixteen at
work have fathers who are willing to
work, but are unable to secure en-
ployment. Making. some allowance for
the existence of parents so debased and
lost to sense of their responsibility
that they prefer to live upon the earn
ings of their children rather than to
work themselves, this statement indi-
Gates certainly the displacement Of
adult by child labor. 1t means the
substitution Of a cheaper for a more
expensive worker. Other conditions
being equal, this is an economic gain.
But other conditions are not equal
when man is cast out of employ
ment and child is hired in his stead.
The community suffers by the change.
The child's work is necessarily inferior
in almost all cases to mans work.
by the difference in their compensa-
tion. The preparation Of the child for
citizenship, If not his physical devel-
opment, is interfered1 with by forcing
him to contribute te the support of
others at time when he should prop
erly be their charge
Little admiration as we have for at
tempts Of the state to regulate private
affairs, the protection Of the weak
against the strong is an undoubtedly
proper exercise Of the peoples power.
We cannot refuseS to accept the OBJ
vious conclusion that it; would be bet
ter for the community, better for bust
ness and far better for the world of
labor If the employment of children
were restricted within still narrower
limits, and the work which they now
perform were transferred to able
bodied men. even if they had to accept
the same compensation. Labor has no
greater difficulty to contend with than
the tremendous competition within re-
cent years created by the accession
to it's ranks of an army Of women and
children seeking employment, and will
ing to do it at the least possible rate.
AS far as the children at least are
concerned, only absolute necessity
can justify their entrance into
the ranks Of wage earners at
a time when they should be
acquiring an education. While the
figures prove that great Improvement
has been effected in ST. Paul in re-
stricting child labor, there is room for
further progress and evidence of it's
naed
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
HEROES SLANDERED.
Democrat Takes Exception to r.
II. Doranss Statements.


To the Editor of the Globe.
At recent Republican meeting in
the First ward two avowed candidates for
mayor occupied the platform. One of these
was F. B. Doran, whom the voters of st. Paul
buried two years ago when a candidate for
the same Office Neither of the speakers said
much that was worthy of attention. Few Re-
publican speakers ever do. Paucity Of ma
terial and lack of candor are the causes. Mr..
Doran, however, made q statement that
should call forth the indignation of good men
and that shows the narrowness of the speak
er. He characterized the policy Of the Demo-
Gratis as that of imitators, and in support Of
this statement cited their action in nominat-
ing, at various times, alleged military heroes
for president of the United States who, in
Mr. Doran's opinion, were not entitled to the
distinction in it's true sense.
The first party to nominate q military hero
of the Civil war for president were the
Democracy, who chose Gen. Mcclellan as their
standard-bearer in 1864 The only other gen.
eral of that war who received presidential
nomination from this party Of imitators" as
Mr. Doran calls the Democracy was Gen.
Winfield s. Hancock. This was in 1880. To
which Of these generals docs Mr.. Doran re-
fer when he says that they were not entitled
to the distinction? Let us see. II he refers
to Gen. Mcclellan he evidently is such a
blind partisan that lie still thinks that Nc
Clellan's operations before he was displaced
by President Lincoln indicated incompetency
We do not think that the judgment Of the
American people will agree with Mr.. Doran
in this estimate. Gen. Mcclellan did the best
that any man could have done with the raw
soldiers he had to command and the training
they received under his generalship stood his
fltustrfous successor in good stead.
II Mr.. Doran referred to Con. Hancock then
for the sake of a little cheap applause he
slandered and insulted the memory of one of
the greatest of military heroes and one OF
the most successful generals who fought for
the Union cause. When Gen. Hancock. after
some of the bravest fighting of the war. in
which he had borne conspicuous part was
carried wounded from the bloody field OF
Gettysburg he won the deep gratitude of the
American people, ard Il Is pretty late In the
day for any one to try TO play to the galleries
by insulting his memory. James G. Blaine.
the great Republican, whose name is en-
shrined in the hearts of all loyal pleEnbcrs of
that political faith, pays Hancock a splendid
tribute in his Twenty Years OF Congress"
Mr.. Blaine says: Gen. Hancock was at tbs
head OF those loyal Democrats who showed
their love fe- the country by brave actions OF
the field of battle. and No subsequent political
distinctions or difference CT partisan sfilia-
tions can lessen the esteem IL which he In
justly held by every loyal lover Of the union
Of these states" Is 1t not strange that Re-
publeans in making political speeches must
either generalize or lie? What was good doo-
trlne for Blaine surely cen stand these chesp
gallery takers in good stead ~
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05

by the determination Of powerful ship
ping interests to secure an especially
favorable rate for themselves. 1t IS
well known. for example, that the
Standard Oil company has for many
years been a favored shipper in vari-
Gus parts Of the country. It's business
is so large, and the receipts from it
form SO considerable an item in the
revenue Of a railroad company, that it
can hold club over the heads of all
naturally between all competing lines,
1t would pay the regular rate; but
where the whole of it can be diverted
to single road, on condition that it
makes cut rate, the argument is apt
to be irresistible. So, too, the beef
combine and various monopolies and
trusts have exercised their power to
make themselves a privileged class
among shippers.
Where the shipping interests of a
mercantile center combine, in order to
compel the granting of a reasonable
rate, no wrong is done, provided the
reduction is general and open to all.
The thing complained Of justly, is that
powerful interests are able to make
special terms, by which they are served
at lower cost than the outside public.
In this way, their ability to crush out
competition is still further increased.
While 1t has been we'll known that ar
rangements Of this sort existed, it has
not been practicable to reach them be-
cause the evidence could not be Sc
cured. AS long as the employees of
railroad companies sheltered them
selves behind the plea that they could
not be obliged to give testimony which
would incriminate themselves, and as
long as the shipper, who was also a
party to the deal, could enter the
same objection, no means existed by
which the violation of the law could
be proved and punished.
The recent decision of the supreme
court, which sweeps away this pre-
tense, as far as the railroads are con-
cerned, ought to make it possible to
lay bare the details Of the transactions
between them and the great CONNER
cial combinations of the country, by
which all equality and justice in freight
rates are made in so many cases an
empty name. The whole people are
entitled to the benefit of the lowest
rate at which railroads can carry
freight with a reasonable profit. The
advantages have been thus far appro-
priated almost exclusi sely by the few.
If the interstate commission will now
put on the screws, punish infleXibly ev-
cry case of discrimination to the eX-
tent Of the law, and so make effective
it's prohibition of favoritism, they will
go far toward enabling the public to
realize the benefits which We're expect
ed from the passage of the act, but
which have thus far been so disap-
pointingly few.
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05
THE PUNISHMENT OF SUICIDE,

A bill revoking the punishment for
attempted self-murder has been intro
duced into the New York legislature.
AS the law at present stands in that
state, every person guilty of attempt
ing suicide is punishable by imprison-
ment in state prison not exceeding
two years, or by a fine not exceeding
81, 900, or both.
The theory upon which the state in
terferes is, of course, that the indi-
vidual has no right to take his own
life, because 1t is not his own, but is
given him for the benefit of the COM
| monwealth. In the days from which
| the common law descends to US, the
state could not afford to be lavish of
lives. Nowadays they are not a rare
commodity, and 1t is to be doubted
whether the life of a man who has so
lost his hold upon existence and him
/ self as to desire suicide is of any value
to the community. According to an old
Persian proverb, when a man pass
ing by a newly made grave shall
end of the world is nigh" In other
words, he who desires death Is prac-
tically dead already. The vitality and
force which make a man of use as a
citizen are usually extinct before his
desire to put himself out of the way
takes definite form.
AS the state has no special in
terest in the lives of such in
dividuals, and as legislation is of no
avail against the impulsive suicides
arising from temporary mental de-
rangement, it seems that the New
York legislature would do we'll to re-
peal a statute imposing penalties upon
people who have faithfully attempted
to get rid Of what they thought poor
thing; and, if it is sincere in it's de-
sire to discourage suicide, pass few
laws calculated to make life better
worth living.
St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-05

pensary of panaceas for every social,
financial or industrial Ill, instead of
mainly a police force, charged with
seeing that each individual have and
enjoy the largest liberty consistent
with the right of others to an equal
enjoyment, These Democrats may well
spend all of April 13 in study of and
meditation on the simple principles of
Democracy in America laid down by
the man whom all true Democrats re-
we're as the father of their party.