The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-12-08

Christmas War h The schooIs-New Yers<'s Queerest Church--Prejects to Encourage Matrimeny.
 New York, Dec, 7--sHughes is the most baffling political figure that ever occupied an important position among presidential possibilities" said vet eran politician this week. and this is the conclusion to which the ordinary observer is being forced. The New York Governor not only has announced that he will not attempt to secure the support of a single dele gate to the National Convention but this week he has quietly put an em- bargo on the delegate hunting efforts planned by some of his friends. At the same time the opposition to him has been fully organized. The triumvirate consisting of State Chairman Wood- ruff, Congressman Herbert Parsons and Speaker of the Assembly James w. wadsworth, Jr.. winch forms the new Republican state machine. has planned. according to report, to an- nihilate the Governors chances for the presidency by blocking the reform measures winch he will ask the State Legislature to pass at it's approach | ing session.
 | It is well understood that these three | men who control the Republican party | machinery have constituted themselves | the leaders of the third term move | ment in this State and have placed their services at the disposal of the | White House.
 On the other hand the corporate in- terests. fighting the Governor because of his public service commission bill | ~AI -a.- HxN- af-.- Asnxr A.S. | putting out feelers for Cortelyou boom. passing the claims of the Secre- tary of the Treasury on his measures to relieve the recest money panic. In spite of the strenuous efforts to discredit him. however, and the fact that not finger is being lifted to- push the Governors chances the Hughes movement is making headway in all parts of the country according to the | reports that come to both the po1iti- clans and the newspapers here. That Is why the political veteran described Hughes as a baffling political figure l The growth of his boom without any machinery behind it violates all the accepted traditions of the politicians. 1 Apparently developments are rapidly | approaching the point where Hughes | is the only man in the country not in- terested in the Hughes boom.
 Father Knickerbocker is e reckless \ cliarge that has been made against the long-suffering old gentleman in knee- | brooches.
 As Comptroller Metz and Health Commissioner Darlington are among l those who make the charges there may be presumed to be some truth in them. The Comptroller points out that it costs s400.ooo. .Ooe a year to run the city or more than the combined expendit- 1 ures of London, Paris and Berlin. It | requires $72,000.000 to. cover the mu- nicipal pay roll alone and much of this 1 Is alleged to go.-for unnecessary sal- aries. In fact Mir. Metz asserts that the positions of one-third of the city's employees could be abolished without lessening the amount of work accom- pIished. Other wasteful items to which he calls attention are the interest charges amounting to millions, due to the city's habit of spending it's income before 1t is collected.
 With the city's debt limit almost reached and with real estate taxes amounting to figures which are eaus- ing property owners to unite in pro- test. these charges are attracting some attention from the usually indifferent New Yorker. Othcf statisticians have come to the front with the assertion that extravaganza is not confined to the municipality but Is a habit of the citizens as we'll. They produce figures 70 show that New Workers are the most vasteful people on earth and that among the items that they virtually throw away are 45,0t0,000 gallons of water a day--and the water problem is one of the most difficult and expen- sive with which the city has to deal-- and $25,O0o.o0o of food products wasted in the course of a year.
 Just at present, however, the people as well as the municipality are having some lessons in enforced economy that may help to improve their wasteful habits if they are really as bad as al- leged.
 New York has just passed through a war whiche for acrimonious discussion has equalled the debate over Presi- dent Roosevelt's action in leaving the Tn God We Trust" motto or Uncle Sam's new coins.
 The metropolitan imbrogIio related to the subject of Christmas and it's ob- servance in the public schools of the city. Heretofore 1t has been the GUS. tom to celebrate the approach of the great Christian holiday among the sch ool children by singing of carols recitations and tableaux, ana relatina | to the sacred event wh ich the day com memorates. It happens however, that New York has among its heteroeen' eous population nearly a million Jews which makes this the largest Jewish city in the world. and that in certain schools on the East Side the great ma jority of the children come from Jew ish families.
 Some parents of the orthodox He braic faith objected to this commence ration of an event which they decline to recognize. The Board of Education mindful perhaps of the voting strength of the city's Jewish population, issued instructions which called for. or were interpreted as calling for the abolition of the Christmas carols from thu l schools Thereupon excited inquiries arose from the churches and filled th' columns of the newspapers as t' whether or not this had ceased to be Christian city and whether the chil dren were to be robbed of their Christ mas.
 The Board of Education decided tha discretion was the better part or valo and issued an explanation to the effec kthat the Christmas observances hat not been abolished. It is expected however, that school principals vii arrange their celebrations to accor' with the religious views of the pre- dominating element among their par ticular scholars and so all classes ma! be satisfied.
 The incident has served to call atten ton again to the cosmopolitan nature of New York's population which ap parentiy includes followers of every re iiRious practice as well as every fanat
 lcism on the face of the globe.
 Among all the city's varied religtou institutions probably the most remark