Omaha daily bee., 1906-07-29

something of higher value than property,
and that Is human sympathy with suffering.
The relief commissioners slough on the
responsibility. Theirs is a loose and stray
Cling command; their kingdom lacks detini-
ton; their functions are obscure to none
more than to themselves. They have de-
cided, for instance, by a count OF noses
two TO one, that a scavenger is hybrid
whose duties are partly scientific and
camp folk in occupation Of the waste places
cannot be settled by any arithmetcal pro-
cess for arriving at truth. II Is matter
in which commissioners noses don't count.
Therefore the commissioners declare,
Not we are the trespassers. If there are
any trespassers-and on this point we do
individual campers Sue them" This Is
genius. Only a month in office and they
have already. caught the official tone to
nicey. Could any man discover heater
excuse for doing nothing? Let there be no
further question that they are worth their
$500 per month per man. ,--..-..
In that vulgar and almost forgotten age
before the fire, using the heartless and in
considerate phraseology of the street, we
should have characterized this declaration
Of Independence by the commissioners as
passing the buck" In that dimly remem-
bered period we should have had excitable
persons calling for troops to repel this in
vasion of the rights of property. Now the
town laughs. We have gone through a
period when no mans money was good.
We have learned lesson OF charity that
is greatest of all.
General Greedy, like an elderly cuckoo,
deposits his campers in the nrSt waste
place he can find without saying by your
leave or with your leave. The young per
sons camped in the leafy and romantic
recesses Of the Preside have been flirting,
It is intimated, with the boys In khaki
General Greedy likes not his place as
chaperon, although, rightly understood
that Is among the most important func-
tons of a modern major general since the
soldier has become Jack of all trades
Therefore he says to lovely woman, "Out
you go! the serpent shall not enter In my
garden" and out she goes the bayonet
propelling and the government mule com
polling.
Go to, old graybeard; vert never young
and hirty yourself? We begin to suspect
these old fellows who know too much,
and although you may be putting up a
very fair imitation Of virtue, there shall
yet be cakes and ale and ginger shall be
and bayonets and whiskers.
Elected from the garden, with General
Greely's flaming sword at the gate, the
refugees are camped on the estate of the
happened since his death to the pile that
Fair scraped together with so much labor
and pains but none so strange as that
any part of It should be used for pur-
poses of humanity and charity. By the
grace of the United States army the Fair
estate has strange bedfellows.
TITS a topsy-turvy world, good sir and
madam. There is something rotten in the
state of Denmark. although the govern
ment inspectors certify that ii Is pure as
leaf lard. 1t is time once more for the
frenzled editorial cry, Whittier are, we
drifting?" Our most profitable principles
were given bad sprain by the earth
quake 1t may take a flood to cure them
by the method indicated i'm the artless
suggestion of Mr. William F. Herrin:
Wouldn't the winter rains help you
Let us put our trust in the rigors of
winter.