Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1905-11-17

rotary is to be most heartily congratu- |
lated on this effort at economy. The
secretary proposes and the congress |
disposes. If Republican senators and
representatives. who have sons and
other near and dear kin on the pay
rolls Go not get together and raise the
estimates, then one long step will be
taken In cutting down appropriations
generally to something like what they
ought to be; but in this case seeing is
believing, for everybody knows that it
is not the habit of Republicans to econ
omize. Still the deficit is so alarming
that they begin to realize that some
thing must be done to cure it. If all
the deadheads could be divorced from
the payroll, a reduction in appropria-
tons equal to the deficit might be easi-
" accomplished; but the sons of their
fathers and the sons-in-law of their ia
thersin-law and the nephews of their
uncles will never let loose until they
are choked loose. So long as Secretary
Taft confines himself to general sug-
gestions as to economy all will be well,
but the moment he becomes specific
and suggests that some favorite or rel
alive of powerful Republican senator
or representative shall cease to feed at
the public crib the devil will be to pay.
As the French say, Nous verrons.
So Early.
1t Is three years till another presi-
dent is to be elected. Nevertheless one
hears nearly as much about presiden-
tial candidates as is usually heard one
year before an election. Ever since
last November Republican candidates
have been gallavanting over the land
electioneerlng as though they were run
ming for constable. Now Democrats
are beginning to>sit up and take notice.
OF course everybody knows that Colo
mel Bryan is commanding figure, and
1t is taken for granted that he will be
a candidate If he sees any chance Of
election. Second to Bryan, and Bryan
only, in popularity is Governor Folk of
Missouri. Recently an editor out in
Kansas, desiring to feel the public
pulse, sent out 1000 coupons and asked
his readers to name their choice. Folk
got nearly as many votes as Bryan.
Then there are Mayor Mcclellan and
Editor William R. Hearst, who are fire.
quently and favorably spoken of and
who unquestionably have each strong
following. AT the dedication of the j.
Sterling Morton monument Grover
Cleveland and Paul Morton, who late
ly retired from Roosevelt's cabinet,
urged Ex-Governor David R. Francis
to accept the Democratic nomination.
Just about the time the railroads re-
considered their idiotic scheme not to
employ anybody over thirty-fve years
Of age an officer in the United States
navy arose and declared that nobody
over fifty is fit to command ship.
He ought to be tapped for the simples
That rule would have put both Dewey
and Schley out of command. 1t would
have placed Lord Nelson on the retired
list before the battles Of Copenhagen
and Trafalgar. If that rule had been
applied to the army Cromwell would
never have been permitted to be sol
dier at all, and Andrew Jackson would
have been running his farm in Tennes-
see instead of whaling the British at
New Orleans. If it should be applied
to the navy, why not also to the army Z
Osler and his disciples are rum lot
Of FOOLS
The kaiser's premier Is evidently pos.
sessed of keen sense of humor as
well as of great ability. He proposes
/ that ten German statesmen debate the
tariff question with ten American
stand patter statesmen. That would
be a great show, with the odds In fa-
vor of the German statesmen, because
they want to make fair exchange of
products with US, whereas our stand
patters want to sell everything and to
buy nothing-precisely what President
Mckinley in his Buffalo speech said
we could not do.
The general consensus of opinion
seems to be that the presidents latest
order touching civil service removals
has knocked the bottom clear out Of
that system. 1t will simply enable Re
publican chiefs to weed out the Demo
Gratis without a hearing. II any system
ever needed an overhauling which
would put some common sense into it
surely it is the civil service system.
Everybody is glad that President
Roosevelt is safe and sound back in the
White House, and everybody hopes he
will not take any more such long
chances of being drowned.