The evening times., 1899-01-07
The stencil OF AIgerism.

Rudyard kiplings stories OF schooiDoy
life may or may not be based on his own
personal experience. but as he has way
of injecting more or less human nature
into his narratives, at least one OF them
contains a moral which may be applied
to the affairs of nations. This is the story
Of an unpopular master, some boys, and
a cat Owing TO some injudicious pro-
ceedings On the part Of the master, the
cat (deceased) found its way into the
space between the flooring and joists of
one of his dormitories. Naturally an un-
savcry odor began TO assail the nostrils of
the occupants. The master at first denied
that there was any odor. But schoolboys
are frank creatures, and they assured him
that there was. He then accused his fell
low-masters of stirring up revolt among
his boys, for that the boys of other houses
said things about the stencil. But the smell
grew worse and verse. Then the master
concluded it was the drains, and used car
bolic acid. proclaiming everywhere that
he did it at his own expense. But that did
no good. Finally the floor was taken up
and the cause of offense removed.
There are a few incidents in this story
which are very closely paralleled in the
history of the Alger Relief Commission.
1t was fondly hoped by that Commission
that the favor of Providence was com
ing its way The Commissioners had
worked on Congress, and been careful in
the selection OF witnesses, and everything
appeared TO be going on smoothly. II
there was any bad cdor in the air-any
smell CT disease and death-it was said to
be all the fault OF the volunteers, who
positively would not keep their camps
clean, and positively would eat green ap
pies and mlnce pie, instead OF the whole
some beans and hardtack for them pro-
vided.
But in spite of all that there was faint
aroma, not altogether agreeable, which
troubled the people in their dreams of
peace and prosperity. The newspapers no
ticed it, and said things. Then the Ad
ministration organs exhausted their rhet-
eric in declaring that there was nothing
wrong, could be nothing wrong, and never
had been anything wrong, and that the
whole story CT suffering in the volunteer
camps was a 'scabrous upheaval of latent
decentralization" or something like that
Just as the schoolmaster did in the story.
Then they, too, said it must be the drains,
or something of that kind, and they used
carbClic acid in the shape OF doctored tes-
timony. But the trouble was not drains,
and it was not carelessness, and it was
not latent Generalization on the part of
the public. 1t was rotten meat, and Gen
eral Miles has taken up the floor and
proved 1t.
The Alger Relief Commission will do
well TO consider this tale. They should
picture to themselves what would have
happened in that school If the schoolmas-
ter had persisted, against all the evidence
of his senses and his public, in declaring
that there was nothing wrong. What if
he had kept on using carbolic acid on the
drains, and never taken up the boards at
all? What if he had, after discovering the
cause of tribulation, ordered the boards
to be replaced over it? That seems to be
what the Commission is trying to do, and
it had better beware. AS a pure -souled
high minded body of public servants, let
it beware of 'Pestiferous Stinkadores.''
There is a general impression that the