The record-union., 1898-02-13

| contempt with which we view the short
comings Of our ancestors. something
| happens every now and then which
| shows that our civilization is only a
| thin veneer.
We turn with horror from descrip-
tions OF the religious wars following the
reformation. and piously give thanks
that the world has outgrown bigotry
Yet We read daily of prosecutions no less
barbarous, having their rise in the
| most enlightened countries in the world
A TEST CASE.
Los Angeles Herald: A Detroit man
seeks to test the validity of the Bland
Allison Act by rendering silver in sat
isfaction of a mortgage. the case to go
to the Supreme Court upon an agreed
statement of facts. We fear nothing
win come of it. Judge Merrick of Colo
rado made an abortive attempt along
much the same lines. a number of years
ago, by rendering silver bullion to the
Philadelphia mint for coinage. under
the provision of the law in question. He
had his trouble for his pains. the courts
refusing, under one pretext or another,
to pass upon the points raised by the
controversy.
SIRihING bACk.
Ell Dorado Republican: The lei Do
dorado Republican" is exactly what the
San Francisco Examiner recently
called the Mountain Democrat"-an
obscure little country paper, but in
these days the honest people of the
United States ought to thank God, or at
least the Goddess of Liberty. that very
many little papers of its class exist all
over the country. which still persist in
trying to tell the truth about political
matters according to the comprehension
of the editor, without so much of the
purely commercial spirit of the great
dailies in publishing or advocating only
what they are paid for. The political
and governmental advice of the great
dailies is now the address of the hired
attorney. Scarcely an editorial writer
employed on those papers has the OPP
portunty of presenting his real beliefs.
AS to the coinage problem, this paper
was one of the very few on the Paclnc
Coast which. like the Portland Ore
gonian," attacked the idea of free silver
coinage long before the conventions met
and regardless of what policy they might
adopt Our principal reason for doing
this without waiting for the republican
party to act, is that the entire idea OF
free coinage with the expectation OF
maintaining the gold and silver coins at
a parity, stimulating business, and ben
efiting the people, is a humbug and we
knew it to be a humbug then.
BROAD TIRED WAGONS.
Santa Rosa Republican,: The Mis-
souri, Experiment Station has made a
large number of experiments during the
past two years with the draft of narrow
and wide tired wagons. These tests
have been made with the ordinary mar
row tired wheels and with 6-inch tires,
on macadam streets, gravel and dirt
roads, in all conditions. on meadows,
pasture, stubble and plowed fields, both
wet and dry. Bulletin No. 80 of the Sta
ton. by Director H. ]. Waters, gives the
results of these tests.
The broad tires pulled materially
lighter on the macadam street and the
gravel roads Also, on dirt roads in all
conditions except when soft or sloppy
on the surface, Lnderlaid by hard road
bed. and when the mud was very deep
and sticky. 1t should be borne in mind,
however, that the roads are in these con-
ditions for comparatively short period
of time, and this at seasons when their
use has naturally been reduced to the
minimum. The tests on meadows,
pastures, stubble land, corn land and
plowed ground in every condition. from
dry, hard and firm to very wet and soft
show, without single exception. large
saving in draft by the use of the broad
tires.
a BROAD VIEW.
San Jose Mercury: The delegates ap-
pointed by the California River Conven-
ton will endeavor to procure an appro-
priation of 5000, 600 for the improve
ment of the Sacramento and San Joa-
quin Rivers. and Congress, notwith
standing it's determination to be eco
nomical, should not hesitate to make the
appropriations 1t is essential to the
prosperity of California that those two
rivers be kept open to commerce, and
this can be done only by keeping the
channels free and unobstructed.