The record-union., 1897-04-21
MINING RECORDERS.

1t incumbent upon 1ocatorS 10 record
their locations in the office of the Coun-
ty Recorder In the end however, pro-
prietors of mines vii probably take
kindly to the innovation The district
system had but few things to recon-
mend it. True, it was some advantage
to have the record in the immediate
vicinity of the location. But to offset
that one advantage the records III
many instances were in the hands OF
very incompetent persons and very
carelessly kept. And there was the
danger always that they would be lost
or destroyed. The new Act will place
them on exactly the same footing as to
preservation as are other records re-
lating to title in the Recorders office
they will be properly indexed and the
work of examining the title to any min
ing property will be greatly facilitated
and simplified
THE TRUE TEST.
Oakland Tribune: Competitive eX-
aminations are only good as a side is
sue but a higher education is not the
best essential for a practical position.
This has just been proved at Tacoma,
where civil service rules recently went
into effect The candidate who was
secured for Chief of Police passed q su-
! perb examination. Last night the
Commissioners went Summing and
! found every gambling house and dis
orderly institution running unrestrict-
| ed, the public morality being at a low
er ebb than ever before. AS a result,
the new Chief is to be discharged for
incomplete ncy and moral cOwardice.'
| The theory that should be carried out
as regards public officers is to keep the
man in the place who has proved him
| self thoroughly qualified to fill 1t. This
| proposition needs no argument, for it
| is palpable that the practical educa-
| ton gained makes the incumbent more
valuable than any newcomer can pos
sibly be, and furthermore the public is
dealing with a known, instead of an
untried quantity. Our form of gov
eminent. with the ever recurring cleo
tons and the constant clutch of poll
ties, makes this theoretical conclusion,
| though, a difficult one to maintain in
actual practice. Still. there are some
cities that have risen above the petty
ambitions of their local office seekers,
and have kept the men at the helm who
| they found competent to pilot the ship.
San Francisco has given a notable in
stance Of the wisdom of this plan, for
! her police department would never
| have attained it's present excellence
| and world wide fame had the Chief
| been changed every two or four years.
1t would have been impossible there, as
| everywhere else, for it is seldom that a
| man can be found to perpetuate the
glory of his predecessor by following in
| his footsteps, and this constant chang
| ing of plans not only disrupts the ser
vice, but is very detrimental to the
| discipline and general welfare of the
! department.
The case in point at Tacoma is a
good object lesson for those who ad-
vocate competitive examinations, as
| the standard of excellence for public
office. Horse sense" is Of more value
than University degree
THE SAME OLD RING.
Alameda Encinal: The infamous
schoolbook ring has it's ramifications
all over the land and its operations are
always carried on in the same way
| Bribery is its mainstay and corruption
| its stock in trade. Wherever it oper-
ates, from Maine to California, it's his
! tory is the same. 1t has just been
caught trying to bride a bill in it's favor
| through the Legislature Of Kansas, just
! as it tried (and succeeded) in this State.
! The only thing to- do is for other States
| to initiate the example of California
! publish their own books. OF course
we dc not ask them to follow our ex-
ample as at first set-allow the jobbers,
in the unooubted interest Of the book
ring, to get out a miserable apology
for a set of books. But do the work
honestly ard well, as it can readily be
done. And they ought TO go further,
and supply every child in the State with
books free of all charge. The boast is
made that we give all our children q
! free education, yet we do nothing of
the kind ard will not till every child in
the land is provided with absolutely
free books, as is done in several of the
| larger Eastern cities.
PIOUS MURDERERS.
Stockton Independent: Pious Murder
er McNulty and another convict named
O'Brien, presumably as pious, beat
their fellow-convi Price, in San
Quentin few days ago over religious
differences" What fine exemplars of
|
three convicts must be. Leaving O'Brien
out, the other two may have some re-
ligious opinions, but both are destitute
of even moral principles. McNulty cut
q low-laborer almost to pieces and
Price sent corrupting literature through
the mails. Such brutes can be parti-
sans on the subject Of religion, as the
thugs Of India are, but they are such
degraded rascals as to reflect only dis
grace on the churches whose faith they
profess.
! CALIFORNIA S FRIEND INDORSED.
San Diego World: c. p Huntington
has again received the high honor and
compliment of being reelected Presi-
dent of the Southern Pacific Company,
an honor that reflects credit on his
great executive ability and shows the
| high confidence in which he is held
by his associates. We congratulate him
thereon, for we consider that he has
| the welfare and interest of California
| at heart, and his success means the
| continuation of his energetic efforts to
make California an empire of pro-
ductive resources, the benefits of which
will be enjoyed by all the people
MILK ADULTERATION.
Santa Cruz Sentinel: Milk Inspector
Byrnes of Philadelphia, in reply to the
sharp criticisms of the Milk Exchange
rises to explain that 81, 900, 900 of the
100000 quarts of milk supplied to
the people of that city annually are not
now water, but We're water seven years
ago. This is a startling statement How
they manage to water milk in Philadel-
! phia without embarrassing the Schuyi-