Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1899-10-10

tional platform Of 1895 in whole and i'll
detail and declare unwavering fidelity
and adherence to the same"
The Chicago platform of 1896 is then
quoted as follows: "a.
1--WE demand the free and unlimited
coinage of both silver and gold ut the
present legal ratio Of 16 to 1, without
waiting for the aid or consent OF any
other nation"
As a clincher, Bryan's utterance IN
Des Moines on August Is is quoted rs
follows: "If any man tells you that
the silver question is dead he is either
trying to deceive you for political pur-
poses or is in gross ignorance of she
The circular concludes with this warm
ing:
Democrats, let no one deceive you.
Free silver at the ratio OF 16 to / is the
most important issue today. Yo.lr
platform demands it and he who. seeks
to put any other question before 1t is
not the friend of the people and is
playing into the hands OF the pluto
Gratis"
State Auditor Merriam has decided
that hereafter no appropriations will
lie carried over beyond the limit fixed
by the acts of the legislature making
The appropriations. Heretofore it has
usually been the custom to allow insti-
tutions and offices in whose favor ap-
preparations are made to draw on the
same until exhausted or until the pur-
pose was accomplished, no matter if
the vouchers were not all filed within
the period covered by the appropriate
ton. This elastic plan was followed in
order to allow the purposes of the APP
preparation to be accomplished, as it
was not always practicable to finish
the work and get all the vouchers in
within the time specified. But Audi
tor Merriam and his new deputy, j.
e. Whelan, say that the limit placed
by the legislature in making the APP
preparation must be obeyed, ,foritt was
put there for purpose and cannot be
legally overlooked. When an officer
having an appropriation for his depart
ment for certain period has not used
it all, he is supposed to have used $50
much thereof as may be necessary"
to use the language of the statute. If
he has not used it, it remains in the
treasury and he begins the new year
with his next years appropriation.
This is the more business-like way, and
accounts will then be balanced at.the
proper time. A number of these lin
its fall on October /, and some sur
prises will be feltswhen interested per-
sons learn that undraWn balances will
remain undrawn. ,t9 80
Mr.. Aldrich has again produced an
interesting and valuable number of the
ANNALS OF iowa. TT contains an au-
thentic article about old Port iDes
Moines, with maps and illustrations;
DR.. Charles "A. White, the famous igeol-
ogist, has contributed an article on
Early Homes and Home Makers of
Iowa." and A. d. Bicknell, of Hum
boldt, who has lived in the county
thirty-five years, contributes careful
study Of the Tama Indians, illustrated.
There are several other articles and
Mr.. Aldrich has his usual batch of his
torical editorials, valuable now, but
will be much more so some years hence,
particularly the brief biographical
s'rNSeSAASo AiO 10 SdluSlihS, as Tie pun
GERS and other notables of Iowa pass
away. In this connection he has
brought to light "a Forgotten Iowa
Author" DR.. Edwin James, Of Bur-
lington, who was in 1920 appointed
botanist and geologist in government
exploring expedition to the Rocky
Mountains, under the command OF Ma
jor Samuel H. Long, for whom Long s
Peak is named. Upon his return Dr..
James was employed two years in pre-
pairing history of the expedition,
which was published in two octave vol
umes in Philadelphia and London. He
was the first man to ascend Pixies
Peak, Mr.. Aldrich says, and that fam
GUS mountain bore for some years the
name of James Peak, the name given
to it by Major Long. DIR. James was
widely known as a scientist and litera-
ry man man, but after some years Of
activity in those lines, he came to To-
wa in 1886 and settled on farm near
Burlington, where he lived very quietly
until his death in 1861. He was a. zeal
Gus, northumberland station agent on
the Underground Railway" often Sc
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