The record-union., 1899-03-15
VOICE OF The PRESS.
ExTRACTs FROM EDITORIAL
EXPRESSIONS.
State and Coast Opinions on Sub
jects Of Living News
Interest.

system of county government Is long
enough to test its adaptability. What
is wanted are a few uniform laws and
then regulate the whole matter Oh
county government to the several coun-
ties to be governed AS the State will
not consent to lengthen the term of the
Legislatures, there certainly ought to
be a diminution of the load which the
legislation has to carry, and no burden
can be dispensed with so well by that
body as that of providing fifty seven
different sorts of government to mlsht
fifty-seven different sorts of counties.
VERY ODD.
Merced Star: 1t seems very curious
to us that the same journals that have
been devoting half their space to the
loud cry against trusts and combina-
tions are agitating in the warmest
terms the formation of the California
prune trust, whose only object Is TO
combine together and raise the price OF
prunes out of all reason.
PRIMARY LAW.
Alameda Encinal: We have not had
time to read the new primary law, but
if the published synopsis is correct,
then we believe that it is good meas
les of the different parties shall be con-
Quoted on the same day, and by regu-
larly appointed officers, in imitation Oh
a general election. Indeed, the entire
proceeding appears to be based on the
general election laws, broadly speaking.
This will do away with men OF eltner
party voting at the primaries OF the
other: it will do away with all the
vic =,
will work a much needed reform. The
..F,ncinar' trusts that the law will not
be found unconstitutional, as was the
bill passed by the last Legislature.
A TURN ABOUT.
| Corning Observer: For many years
! the poultrymen of California nave peer
complaining over the fact that grea.
deal of poultry is continually snlppeu
| into this State from the East But II IS
gratifying to know that during 'ne
past month California has nad
greater demand for poultry and esss
from the East than we can supply. Inc
extremely cold weather In the Eds.
has almost externinated the poul.,y
crop. and the Eastern people naturaiiy
look to their more fortunate SISTER ola'e
| to supply their wants.
QUESTION ANS w EftED.
| etoekton Mail: It is rather hum1ilat-
| ing that the Filipino rebels should De
armed with Mauser rifles, which carry
a hundred yeards beyond the range Oh
the Springfield muskets with which our
soldiers are armed. AS result, the
Malays are able to keep our outposts
and pickets at distance which rem
/ lders them harmless against the enemy
Why is it that with all our progressive
spirit and inventive genius we shoulo
have Jagged behind in the matter OF
firearms, so that when the war opened
the army of even ur1progressive Spain
was armed with a better weapon than
our r?-Record- Union.
Because we have no staff. When the
Mexican war came on it found US with
flint locks In 1861 we had not
breech- loader in the army, and at San
tiago there were no magazine rifles. 1t
is as the Philadelphia Press says. IN
all small arm Improvements for fifty
years, percussion locks, breech-loaders,
magazine, small-bore or smokeless pow
der. the army of the most advanced ma
tion of the world in the arts and in In
yention has been behind other armies
The record of the staff as whole is full
of this sort of thing. The organization
is bad The permanent heads keep
their places independent of merit, and
by political pull AS was said in de-
bate in the Senate the other day, with
out contradiction, the service Is handi-
capped by a permanent bureaucracy
which will neither learn itself nor make
room for men from the line who know.
HOW 1T WAS KILLED.
Santa Clara Sentinel: The bridge
combine tried to get a Joker" into the
County Government Act, but the Rec
ord Union" promptly discovered it and
exposed it to the light Of day. This
Joker looks like the work Of the men
who have been manipulating the con-
struction of some of the Santa Clara
County bridges.
AN EXAMPLE.
| Alameda Argus: One of the most I'M
pressive objects in road building is af
forded in the stretch of highway ex-
tending from Elrnhurst to Haywards.
1t has been Systematically built within
two years, and affords a wagon way
that is simply a delight to drive upon.
| Teamsiters can haul twice as much
during the winter times as they could
before Pleasure vehicles spin along
without finding q rut. Besides enabling
wheel traffic to be carried on to the best
advantage at all times of the year it
saves enormously IN the wear and tear
of vehicles and adds beyond compute
to the enjoyment of those who drive for
pleasure One of the strange things of
this very progressive age is the back
wardness In road building. We con-
struct the finest railways, and dig ca
nails ait enormous expense and even pro-
pose to erect bicycle tracks up in the
air; but we almost totally neglect our
wagon roads, which are used SO con-
stantly and generally and would be
used much more did they invite it. An
indication of this general Indifference
to the condition of highways is afford
ed in the fact that we are now writing
an editorial concerning a piece of mod
ern built highway some eight miles in
length and referring to it as very un-
usual improvement.
THEY ENLIST.
/ Fresno Republican,: The claim that
Americans would not enlist in sufficient
numbers to keep up an adequate army,
except under the stress of war excite
nnent, is not borne out by the facts.
The new recruiting officers are over
run with applications for admission to
| the regular army, though it is under
stood that the army is to do Just the