The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-01-03
Foreign Invasion Also Fills Up
The Domestic Market.
Cost of Keeping Cook County
Court House In Trim.
Chief Koran Wants Place For
Firemen to Exercise.
Especial to The Free Press.l

4
| Mississippi river as a great highway of
transportation is threatened by con
ditions at its headwaters where. it
has been discovered, the rapid cutting
of timber has caused hundreds of lakes
to dwindle and even to dry up, thus
| reducing the water supply of the big
river to the, gulf. Steps are being
taken here to perfect an organization
to bring the rapid destruction of the
native forests to a stop, for it takes
but fiye minutes TO cut pine giant
that it would require 100 to $50 years
to grow. Thousands of square miles
| in the lake region from which the Mis-
sissippi gets its supply are so rapidly
being stripped daily of trees that al
ready the present and future flow of
| the stream is affected. Engineers and
scientists agree that it is only a ques
ton of time until tile natural reser-
voirs will have been so greatly reduced
that the time of 10y water" will find
the Father of Waters little more than
a crooked streak of mud. The remedy
recommended is the conservation of
such timber as still stands, particu-
larly that ON Indian reservations, and
the setting aside of tract of several
million acres, now unpeopled as
permanent preserve. Under the gen.
eral head of conserving the country's
natural resources President Roosevelt
in his last message printed out the
need for such steps as this. In
Germany and other European countries
the forests for years have been care
fully guarded against such waste as
now is taking place in northern Min-
nesota without check. Investigations
of the ravages which have been in
progress in the Minnesota forests al
ready presage startling revelations
of ruthless waste, by overflow waters
at flood water dams that are never
opened and of illegal numbering in the
interior where the '.pine trust" holds
absolute rule, regardless of law or
the future of the country.
\ rainbow of domestic happiness
because servants girls are plentiful
thanks to heavy immigration-is arched
brilliantly above Chicago this New
Year season. 1t is only a few short
months since the housewives of this
city were forced to organize in order
to try to secure the help they needed
and were willing to pay well for. Now
it is an organization of the servant
girls that has hung out flag of dis
tress. On one day their league had
3l3 more applications for places than
there We're places to ba filled, most of
the surplus cooks, laundresses and
general homework girls being Scand-
navians. The high wages which result
ted from the recent shortage, allured
many girls who expected to step into
Il Sc a-week job as soon as they
and their baggage reached Chicago. and
it has proved a keen disappointment
to find they must wait Many house
holds have reduced the number of
servants as one means OF retrenchment
during the days of financial ,incer-
tainties Similarly there has been a
noticeable curtailment in the automo-
bile repair bills, although Chicago has
not seen the stampede to sell expen-
siye limousine ears that has marked
the days of sorrow in New York.
1t will cost $l22,270 for Cook county
to keep its finest court house in the
world in order next year. From Gus
todian of the building chief engineer
and head electrician down, and includ-
ing IL elevator men fifteen washers.
three ianitors, thirty assistant JAM
tors, and ninety ianitresses and scrub
women, the expenses run into bigger
sums than one would suppose. For
instance, the elevator crews will cost
$l3,260, the window washing $4,000.
the janitor service $4,000. Add to
these the continuous service of wood
work rubbers, steamfitters, plumbers,
electricians, marble caretakers, carpen.
ter and iron caretaker and you have an
idea what is rguires to keep the big
office buildings free of Chicago dust
and the wastepaper baskets emptied.
lie holiday consumption of oyters
has had no unfortunate incidents to
contradict the 90 X put upon the
bsalves as pure food by the depart
Ilent OF health in Chicago and in New