Omaha daily bee., 1908-05-16
OTHER LANDS THAN ouRs.


Critics Of the undertaking variety fire.
quently lament the frequency OF graft
scandals in our public life and point TO
Europeans as exemplars Of public honesty
The comparison is untrue As a matter Of
fact, public and private graft knows no
national bounds or race lines. Italy fur
ntshes an earthquake scandal rivallng
that OF San Francisco. An investigation
into the distribution Of the fund raised for
the relief of the sufferers from the earth
quake in Calambria, September s. 1906,
shows that out Of 100000 contributed, s.
100000 were badly distributed. Rich people
we're not ashamed to take gifts meant for
the poor. Well-to-do landlords played the
shabblest part In the scandslous business.
putting UP flimsy temporary structures and
drawing out OF the relief fund exorbitant
rents for housing the unfortunates In
London, where municipal administration Is
accounted nearly perfect, several office
holders corresponding with American alder
men, recently were shown to be grafters
of no mean order They were caught with
the goods on, consisting of household fur
niture, wearing apparel and toilet articles,
which were charged up to the public. Sur
passing either of these in wretched cupidlty
stands the distribution of the loot realized
from the sale OF the confiscated church
property in France Europe puts up as
fine grade of graft as can be found under
the sun, but the light of publicity does not
always reach the ocean.
The Irish university bill, which passed
the second reading in the House Of Com
mons by vote of 3A to 81, appears to be
satisfactory solution of a perplexing
problem, and is reasonably certain to be-
come law. 1t is a clevery constructed
compromise measure, designed to allay dis
| content occasioned by the monopoly OF
government favor enjoyed by Trinity col
lege, Dublin. The measure creates, first,
a Dublin university. which is to include
new college at Dublin and the present
college at Cork and Galway; secondly, a
| Belfast university, which is to be evolved
out of Queens college, Belfast. No re-
ligious test will be authorized at either in
stitution, but the senate of the Dublin uni
versity will consist of twenty-nne Roman
Catholics and sever Protestants, while the
Belfast senate though mainly Protestant,
must include one Roman Catholic. The
revenue of the existing colleges will be- in
| creased by grant of 100000 from the i'm
peral treasury, but none of this money !s
to be spent in denominational teaching
The new college at Dublin, intended mainly
for Roman Catholics, will be erected and
will receive a grant of S75OOOO from the
government. The essence Of the measure
is to create college for Roman Catholics
| at Dublin and a college for Presbyterians
at Belfast, leaving the Episcopalians in un-
| disputed control of Trinity college, Re.
! ligious antipathies were thus disarmed,
party lines Vanished and its enactment
into law is assured.
Power, honor, leadership, the control and
! direction of a nations policies were a
! greater lure for the late Sir Henry Camp
| bell ll-Bannerman than an extension of life
purchased by relinq1ishing the premiership
! of Great Britain. The highest honors
which crowned his public career came to
him late in life, and, like most public men,
he preferred death in the harness to rust
| ing out in private life. The Glasgow Her
aid relates on good authority that after
his first heart seizure in November last
| Sir Henry, who was a naturally robust
man, might have lived on for some years
| If he needed the first warming 1t was
| at an important speech at the Colston
banquet at Bristol which brought on the
beginning of the end. During the Illness
which followed the premier asked his doc
tor to tell him frankly how long he might
expect to live. "If you live restfulIy and
give up your public duties, perhaps six or
seven years" "And If 1 remain in pub
lie life?" II fear not more than two. !"
"Then 1 will remain where ] am" said
Sir Henry AS a mater of fact he lived
only bare six months.
|
Antonio Mangano an Italian resident of
New York who recently visited his native
land, relates in the May Charities and the
Commons many Instances of the demoraliz-
ing effect on Italian communities of the
exodus to the United States. The records
of the town of San Demetrlo is a type of
all. The first emigrant party, consisting
of five persons, left the town in 1875. San
Demetrio then had a population of $3.50.
Now the number is barely 1900. There is
scarcely family in the town that has not
some member in America. Mr.. Mangano
says the desire to emigrate is exceedingly
strong. The effect on the country's well
fare is very injurious. Hands are wanted
in every line of work. Fifteen years ago
there were no less than 5000 sheep and
goats pastured on the hills and fields OF
that locality. Today less than 1000 can be
tound. men now refuse to be shepherds
and live in little straw huts out in all
kinds of weather, for Is or 25 cents day
Wages now are from 40 to 80 cents a day
The success and comparative affluence oi
[ their kindred in America inspires a uni.
versal desire TO emigrate and every posi-
BILE sacrifice is made to obtain sutficien
means to follow the crowd. In the las
} six months, however, the tide has turned
sharply, and the Homecoming multitud,
inform the discontented natives that for
tune is not picked off the bushes in thi,
] great land.
The principle of protecting home indus
tries is embodied in a simple but effective
way in the patent law Of Great Britain
which went into effect on the first Of tn,
year. BY the terms of the law patents
, already granted may be revoked If a show
ing is made, satisfactory to the comp
troper, that the patented article or process
is manufactured or carried on exclusively
or mainly outside the United Kingdom.
The aim of the law is to compel foreigr
manufacturers of patented articles, whC
. desire protection of the law, to manufac