The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1899-09-15

| they want to do their best work. At
| present the rule is to clear up the
docket, whether or no. There may be
very important principles at stake and
the courts ruling will be eternal in in
| Huence-never mind the decks must be
swept in preparation for the next term.
And thus it is that the justices want
to be relieved and strengthened. Petit
ton for the reopening of a number Of
cases once adjudicated by this court,
While not unusual, suggests that it
might be well not to work the judges
| SO hard-to give them more time-that
an opinion once emanating from the
bench might be presumptively fully
matured and, like the declarations Of
Modes and Persians, final
Supt. Harvey's Turn Later.
Superintendent Harvey has behaved
like dumb sheep in the hands of it's
! Shoarers while his enemies are raising
the cry Of Book trust" But that is
because the matter of the outline Of
history" with american Book Com
| pany' advertisements on it. being in
! the hands of a committee of the normal
regents he could not in good taste rush
into the newspapers at present On
| that committee are Regents Thomp-
son, Fruit and Woellager, and they
have not met yet. Superintendent
Harvey will no doubt have his innings
later. AS everyone knows, besides be-
ing an educational expert, he is a man
of much sagacity and political clever
ness, and those who think he is a
"deader' will be awakened at q sta
ton down the road.
! Competition at Its Worst.
Agents for school book publishing
| concerns are among the most lively.
talented and malicious Of men. The
| bitterness, plOttings and, it is said,
| corruption that creep into this seem
| ingly gentle craft Of making geOgra-
| phieS and spelling books for innocent
| children is incredible to those who
| have never seen a gang of runners
work a board Of education. The
| situation is complicated by reason of
| cooperative and cOnspiring alliances
| rings within rings-.that befog and be-
| devil these eminently respectable pub
| fishing houses whose names we used
to rank with Mr.. Baagster who made
| Bibles for a living. In short, that q
| school official should be denounced by
| school board agent is rather in the
nature of a clean bill Of health than
! otherwise. It suggests that some
where, some time the agent has failed
| to make a sale. In this case personal
| grievance is said to be at the bottom
Of the trouble, and already some of the
| firms which joined in the protest have
| withdrawn from the prosecution. 1t is
! said they supposed they were cooper
ating in a friendly, informal protest
| against a rivals advertising in official
! documents (history outlines), and were
| surprised to learn that attorneys had
| been employed to ferret things and
| punish somebody.
[ suppose that possibly some indis-
| erection through oversight had been
! committed in trying to save perhaps
| $50 to the state by allowing some adj
| Vertising on a school document and
| in recommending a particular text
| book in history (McMaster's), but I
understand superintendent Harvey's
| many friends in the matter say not.
| The records Of the department are said
to abound with parallel cases and they
| have no question Of ringing yindi-
| cation.
Trying to Get Something for Nothing.
| The get-rich-quick orders are once
more in our midst, though Bank Com
missioner Kidd is on their trail. About
| six years ago they f1Ourished by the
hundreds, andall practically on the same
| line of fraud. A lot of people pay in
| say s. week. At the end of so many
months there is to be a division. By
| that time the certificates will be paid
| up" Each fellow that ''goes in" quiet
| ly believes that most every one except
| himself will 'drop out" In fact, the
| agent who sells the shares gives the
| victim the wink and tells him $50 per
! cent. fall out" AS matter Of fact,
| the per centage is only Is per cent.
Sometimes the principal is to be 4
| diamond, sometimes a plot of land in
Alabama, (Where there is a lot of land,
swamp, hill-many kinds), but always
with an alternative choice Of cash.
It is refreshing to know that almost
no one goes into an investment COM
pany Of this sort expecting to earn the
enormous profits in six weeks or so,
! through Legitimate meanS-as large in
tereSt returns. The Queerest ruralist
does not so confuse himself. Some
clever rogue lays the scheme out. The
four schemes that Madisonians know
about all trace to the fertile brains of
two men, one Of whom is already be-
hind the bars.
Little Sympathy for Suckers.
The investors ''go in with their
eyes OPEN They expect to profit at
| the other investors expense. 1t is
| the successor to the lottery Many very
sensible people have taken shares in
these schemes, the bottom Of which
is now falling out. They felt the
itch for speculation. They wanted a
flyer" Some of them got the big
profts-their shares natures. They
were the stool pigeons, etc, lure the
others on.
But for those who were played for
suckers, it is difficult to feel sorry for
them.
Net Earnings Over $12 100000.
Thirty-four roads in the state, rep
resenting 5000 miles, in reports for
the year ending Dec. 81, 1898, show
gross earnings to the amout of $685.