The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-02-06
EDITORIAL OPINION.

EDITORIAL OPINION.
Can it be that General Miles has joined
Col. Bryan's party? Speech is silver, but
silence is golden. Miles has not been silent
for some time.-Terre Haute Express.
If the present Legislature fails to pass
some measures to secure reform in town
ship and county business it will disappoint
the people of the whole State and will
doubtless be made to fell the weight of
their disapproval.-New Castle Courier.
There is no doubt that the Legislature
will pass county and township reform bill
in some form. Careful attention should be
given to it's details that no injustice is
done to anyone concerned and that the in
terests of the people are safely guarded at
every point.-Seymour Republican.
The President cannot overlook such
breach of military discipline even in the
commander of the army and he cannot do
less than notify General Miles that if he has
anything to say on these subjects he should
say 1t officially and not make 1t the sub
ject of a. scandal in the neWspapers.-Oak-
land City Journal
General Miles evidently thinks the Consti-
tuition is at fault in naming the President
as commander-in-chief of the army and
navy. He prefers to have his views go
through the press rather than employ the
formality of q regular report. General
Eagan may deserve his punishment, but
surely Miles is not guiltleSS III the matter.
Fort Wayne Gazette.
One of the most ridiculous propositions
suggested for the consideration of the Gen
eral Assembly is that of creating the office
of supervising architect. The counties
would not tamely submit to the dictation of
such an officer. and the State has very lit
tie demand for services of this kind. Pu-
rality of offices is the bane of the State.
Means should be found to decrease, rather
than to increase them.-Elkhart Review.
Mr. Caraway's bill to prevent corruption
at the polls, now before the Legislature,
lays a heavy penalty on the poor voter who,
under strong temptation, may be induced
to accept a consideration for his vote but
removes all penalty from the more guilty
man who lays the temptation before him.
1t is difficult 10 see the justice of such pro
should rather be the heavier, if distinction
be made.-Vincennes Commercial
The compulsory educational law, with it's
truant officers, has seemed to work well,
some 30, 900 pupils having been added to the
prior number. Why attempt to pass a bill
aboishing truant officers and saddling their
duties upon the township trustees. thus de-
moralizing the law and perhaps increasing,
instead Of diminishing, the cost of COMPEL
ing school attendance? Whatever be done,
let not the truant office be placed on the
crease the number of officials, which is al
ways q wise thing to do, but ii would not
decrease the expense.-Muncie News.
Representative Rifenburg made state
ment in the General Assembly last week to
the effect that nearly all the people in this
county favored the new Superior Court bill
drafted by one Knots, and introduced by
him by Knotts's request" etc. Instead of
this being the case there are not more than
900 out of the 5000 voters in this county but
who would gladly vote for the repeal of the
obnoxious Superior Court bill altogether. 1t
ct. N,1 lrFa dana
people without their consent, and as the eX-
penses of running it are far in excess of
the Circuit Court the law authorizing the
Superior Court ought to be repealed.-Crown
Point Register.
Whether or not the judiciary should be re-
organized and revised is a. question on which
there is much honest difference of opinion,
and consequently doubt as to whether such
a movement could be accomplished. But
there is one matter to which the General
Assembly should certainly direct it's atten-
ton and that is the abuse growing out or
the appointment of special judges. THESE
latter are called to the bench on many pre-.
texts and invariably add to the expense of
the courts, since for the time OF their occu-
pancy both the special and serving Judge
draw salaries. Last year I'm this State al
most $4,000 was expended in payment of
extra salaries. The practice is indefensible
and should be corrected as speedily as pos
sible.-Lafayette Courier.
A good measure before the Legislature and
one that will undoubtedly become a law,
is the settling of the question of the right
of the veterans in the Marion Soldiers
Home to vote The Democrats by underhand
means ATTEMPTED to deprive the old soldiers,
spending their last days at that institution,
from exercising the right of suffrage last
fall thus throwing out a great number of
votes for the Republican congressman, Maj.
Steele. The plea of the Democrats was that
the home was on government property and
therefore it's inmates were disfranchiesd at
state elections The bin now before the As
sembly places the home under state jurisdfc-
ton so that there can be no question about
the right of the old soldiers to cast their
votes at any election in the future.-South
Bend Tribune
The bill which has passed the House and
is now before the State Senate to provide
the office Of state boiler inspector and depu-
ties. should be defeated. 1t is the creation
of a needless office at the expense of the
taxpayers. The small number of boiler ex-
plosions is enough to show the uselessness
of tho office. As 1t is insurance companies in
spect all boilers whose owners care enough
about them to have them insured. They
are inspected so as to ascertain the risk,
and il may be assured that the inspection
is as rigid can be. A man who does
not care enough about his boiler to
have it insured and inspected has
not a very big boiler and would not
care for state inspector. The hest way our
Legislature can economic is to refuse to
create just such needless offices in order
to furnish some man soft snap. '-Etich-
mond Item.
Many cheap men get into legislatures.
There are some in the Indiana Legislature.
They are always ready to make political
capital out of small talk. Thcy rail about
corporations when a moments investigation
would show them that most all of the most
valuable and useful enterprises are con-
Quoted by corporations Probably nine
tenths Of all the laboring men in Anderson
and more are employed by corporations, no
stakeholder in which would be able TO con-
duet the business alone 1t requires the
united capital and talent of many men, just
as it requires the labor and skill Of many
laborers, to make a success of the iron and
steel industries. tin plate, glass, etc. Now,
there are some corporations that are bad;
but il Is sheerest nonsense for men 10 stand
in the legislative halls and decry all cor
porations and all men of capital, as we
have recently heard them do.-Anderson
Herald.
The opinion is fast gaining ground that
President Mckinley could bring about a
speedy termination of the post bellum