New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1897-02-03
Wednesday February 8, 1897.

this in view of the fact shat so many
thousands Of dollars have been lost IN
,failipg banks. A New Ulm citizen sugg-
;gests far more sensible and business
Like course. He advocates that instead
of keeping from one to two millions ON
hand and loaning it to banks at'two ana
three per cent interest, thNs giving them
the chance of loaning it @ut again at
eight and ten per cent to the very people
from whom it, came originally in the
shape of taxes, the state askfor loans from
the banks ut low rate Of interest, rate
which the state could undoubtedly Sc
cure, and then collect taxes at such times
as it became necessary to meet the pa
per held by the banks. This would pre-
vent loss to the people, through the
breaking of banks, the banks themselves
would he cunning no risks, and the peo-
pie would not be deprived Of their own
money for so long period of time, as
must be the,case when the state holds
balance of two million dollars. Why
wouldn't the plan be feasible?
DR.. Lyman Abbot of Brooklyn is in
great trouble and all because he ventured
to tell his congregation that the story of
Jonah and the whale was on the order
of the "Bigelow Papers, in other words
that it was fshy-that it didn't pretend
to relate an actual occurrence, but
was merely a satire from which all
might draw lesson. DR.. Abbot is pas
tor of one of the high toned churches of
Greater New York, but his latest cxpe-
rience would indicate that there is still
much room for education il the metro
polls and in quarters too where you
would least expect.
Children less than eight years old at
tend the production of Shakesperian
plays in the Sanity City. Let no one
hereafter talk of the precociousness of
foreigners.
Representative Heimerdinger's bill to
reduce legislative salaries suggests the
idea that it would not be bad plan to
give the representatives fixed salary, in
keeping with their Office and the expen-
ses which they must necessarily incur in
the discharge of their duties. instead of
a per diem. The present allowance is
not sufficient for proper representation
and it naturally leads to dishonesty in
many. Give them fixed salary and it
will in the end prove a saving to the state.
The Legislative business will then be
marked by far greater dispatch than it is
at present.
A visit to the Capitol City of the state,
once a healthy, sound and hourishing
business centre, reveals a striking lesson.
Where once business blocks in a Il parts
of the city were occupied and affording
employment to many, scores of them
are now vacant and huge banners, an
nouncing forced and assignee sales,
adorn the windows of others where once
all industries tlourished, many are now
struggling against great odds and hun
dreds of benefciaries are out Of employ
ment; where once banks were con-
sidered safe, confidence is withdrawn and
no one knows when the next will go to
the wall; in every phase of business and
in every walk of life almost, there is
something that cripples, something that
retards. What IS it? The writer may
be mistaken, but careful observation
from many points of view impel him to
the belief that it is nothing less than the
same institution that has cursed every
city in which it is permitted to thrive
the cursed department store. Owned,
fed and promoted by eastern capital, 1t
lives not for the. city off which it
reaps its profits; by its centralized and
monopolistic character, it kills off OPP
position, and while giving the beneti. OF
cheap prices, stiles prosperity by cut,
ting off the means with which to buy
it breaks down the small merchants, thus
indirectly affecting every fine of indus
try and business; cuts down the wages
of toll. promotes immortality by remov.
ing the means Of obtaining livelihood
honestly. and brings on poverty and
misery for the many while enriching the
few. AS Senator Davis says, it IS i'm.
moral in itself. 1t is a curse to the com.
munity and eventually must be the
source of its bitterest woes. The sooner
it is blottei out the better, land the inves.
,igatlon, to that end, now proceeding in