Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1908-11-07
Woodstock Business Cards
NOTES FROM WASHINGTON
Especial Correspondence.)

es cannot be extended to the families
of employees who died a natural death
while in the service of the common
carriers, though that privilege is ac.
corded to the families of employees
killed In the service. These are among
the rulings announced by the Inter.
state Commerce Commission recently
As Filipino Sees lt.-Pablo Ocam-
pO de Leon, one of the two resident
commissioners of the Philippine ISL
ands in the United States, called at
the White House the other day to talk
with the president on political and
economic matters in connection with
the islands. He thinks congress
should grant an extension of
certain political rights to the Filipi
nos and make provision in the tariff
for the free entry into the United
States of sugar and tobacco from the
Philippines He advocates a reduc.
ton in the Philippine tariff so as to
permit the entry into the islands free
of duty of American agricultural ma
chinery. He said the Filipinos desired
free trade between the islands and the
United States only in tobacco and
sugar.
Wage Farmers Expenses.-The bu.
reau of labor of the department of com
merce and labor made an investigation
Of the principal wage-worlling occupa-
tions in over 1000 establishments, rep
resenting the leading manufacturing
and mechanical industries of the coun-
try, for the year 1907. Bulletin II OF
the bureau gives the results of the in
vestigation and shows that the aver
ages per hour in 1907 were 3.7 percent
higher than in 1906, and the regular
hours of labor per week were 0.4 per
cent lower than in 1906. Investiga-
tions were also made of the retail pric'
es of thirty principal articles of food,
and this investigation showed that they
were Az percent higher in 1907 than in
1906, thus making the purchasing pow
er of an hours wages, as measured by
food, one-half of l percent less in 1907
than in 1906. The difference does not
appear to be very striking when re-
duced to averages and percentages in
this way, and besides the facts ineVi-
tably relate to year that is past and
gone. The average wageworker, like
almost everybody else, is vastly more
Interested in the future.
Observes Birthday simpIy.-Presi'
dent Roosevelt observed his 50th an
niversary, Oct. 81, very simply. He at
tended to his executive duties an usual
and, except from the Hungarian Re-
publican club of New York and the re-
ceipt of a large number of congratu-
latory messages, some floral tributes
and gifts from the members of his FAM
lily, the day was the same to him as
any other day. Late in the afternoon
the president went for a horseback
ride. There was jolly dinner at the
White House in the evening in honor
of the anniversary, at which no guests
were present. King Edward of Great
Britain sent one of the first congratula-
tory messages received. 1t read: 81
request that you will accept my cordial
congratulations on the occasion of your
B birthday, together with my best wishes
for your welfare and prosperity" Gov
ernor Hughes of New York. tele-
graphed my heartiest congratula-
tions and most cordial regards" Arch
bishop Ireland of st. Paul telegraphed:
II beg leave to offer you my most
earnest wishes that many, many more
anniversaries be allowed you in SER
vices of your country and of human.
ity." Similar messages were received
from many points, including tho one
from committee of the enlisted force
of the navy at Newport, r. l.
HercuIean Task 6seun.-Prepara
tions are already under way for that
herculeaN task-the taking of the naet
national census of the United Staees
in the year 1910. The counting, at the
end Of each decade, of every man, wo-
man and child in the republic is one OF
the biggest undertakings which I'm.
Gle Sam is called upon to assume.
Realizing that with the continuous
rapid increase in population the next
census wiH be a reeord-breaker in
every respect, the government officials
sought to take time by the forelock
and secure at the last session of con-
gress an appropriation of money
which could enable them to plunge
into the work without delay. Howev-
er, at the last session of the national
legislature there were many unexpect-
ed demands for money, and so the law
makers agreed that the appropriation
for the census should go over until
the winter of 190S-09. There is rea-
son to expect that the sum needed for
this counting of noses on grand scale
will be set aside soon after congress
convenes next December, but in the
natural order of things it will not be-
come available for use until the gov
enmental New Year day following
July /, 1909 Thus 1t will be next
summer at the earliest before Uncle
Sam will begin to give places on his
payroll to the thousands of extra en-
ployes who will be needed to take the
census. But it has not been necessary
for the officials to await formal con-
gressional action before attacking
some of the preliminary work for the
Thirteenth Census OF the United
States. For months past the admin
istrative officials of the Census Bureau
have been puzzling their brains over a
thousand and one details of the vast
undertaking and, perhaps even more
important in results-the mechanical
experts of the Census Bureau have
been gradually evolving a number Of
wonderful new machines which VIII
enable the census returns to be COM
piled by mechanical means more
quickly and more accurately than has
ever heretofore been possible
Sixty languages are in everyday use
IN Freetown, Sierra Leone.