Woodruff County news., 1902-04-17

The lower house of congress pass ed the senate bill extending char ters of national banks twenty years.
 The State Bank at Ruskin, Neb., was robbed by five bandits of $16,- 900 in cash. Dynamite was used in blowing the safe.
 F. P Sargent, president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Fire men, has accepted the appointment of commissioner general of immigra- tion, to succeed T. V. Powderly.
 Whitelaw Reid, special embassy to the coronation of King Edward, will have to defray the expense of the trip for himself and staff, congress having failed to make an appropria- tlon for that purpose.
 A general advance of 10 per cent in wages of cotton mill operatives went into effect on the Sth inst. in the southern half of New England. More than 75,000 hands are bene- fited by this raise.
 A great sensation was created at Marion, Ind, by the discovery of m organized band of shop filters com posed of some of the best known women of the city, most of them wives of well to do citizens.
 The report of the St. Louis grand jury, which was in session several weeks investigating municipal cor ruption, caused great sensation when made public few days ago. Indictments were returned against Robert N. Snyder, an ex-council- man, for bribery; Edward Butler and John H. Becker for attempted bribery and G. J. Kobusch for per jury. The grand jury report de- clares that the people of St. Louis have but a vague conception of the extent to which corruption and ve- nality have for the past ten years existed among the sworn officers and l public servants. 1t finds the condi- tion of affairs almost too appalling for belief The parties indicted be- long to both political parties.
 The department of agriculture | has issued a statement of the for eign trade of the United States in agricultural products. It shows that during the fiscal year 1901 foreign countries purchased American farm products to the value of $952,000,- 900, representing the largest agri- cultural exports in our history. Com | pared with the record for 1900 they show an increase of over $100,000,- 000 Agricultural imports, on the other hand, disclose a considerable | falling off when entrusted with the trade of the year preceding The various products of agriculture re- ceived from foreign sources during 1901 had an aggregate value of $392, 100000, or $2S,000,000 less than in 1900. In comparison with the value of agricultural imports ex- ports show the exceptionally large excess of $560, 100000.
 Dun's Review reports commercial failures for the first quarter this year, 3,41S in number and $33,731,- 159 in amount of defaulted liabili- ties, compared with 3,335 failures for $31, ,103,486 during the same three months of 1901 Manufactur- ing insolvencies numbered ZIG, against 710 last year, while liabili- ties aggregated $14,775,904, com7 pared with 12,504,222 in 1901. There were 2,502 trading failures for $15, ,327, and last year there were 2,46S for $14,552,906. Other commercial failures not properly in cluded under either of the two prin- cipal divisions numbered ITO, with liabilities~of $3,43S,527, against 157 last year for $4,646,35S. Banking and other fduciary defaults were 2G in number, against 21 year ago, but there was large increase in liabilities to $15,5SS, S,663, compared with only $3,441 1889 a year ago.
 Capt. Joseph B. Coghlan, of the