The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-10-16
KANSAS COMMENT
WHERE LIFE IS CHEAP.

One isn't greatly shocked to read of
the loss of many thousand lives by
flood along. the Yang-Tse.-Kiang, by
plague in Canton, or starvation on IN
dia's plains In the crowded orient,
life is cheap as most people know. II
is held higher in the Occident, OF
course; at least in most western coun-
tries. But there are exceptions, IL
seems. Kipling has called Russia the
west ed of the orient, but he is Eng
lish and prejudieed; most authorities
count the cars domain among the
western countries, and there life is
rather cheap. It seems so, too, in
Italy, where grim necessity forces peo-
pie to farm the steam heated edge OF
volcanoes with mean dispositions;
where ignorance makes it difficult to
fight cholera, and where crime is or
ganized on a business basis. But one
need not travel so far af1efd to ma
places where life is cheap. There is
our own land of the free, and home OF
the more or less brave.
We were thinking just now OF the
recent disaster at Austin, Pa, where
upwards of a hundred lives were snufr-
ed out without time for parting
prayer. It was not as if that were an
act of Providence, an unforeseen cat
astrophe that none could stay. more
than year ago weaknesses developed
in the dam above Austin which caused
uneasiness, and which were pointed
out in an illustrated article in the En-
gineering News. There was warning
the dam didn't take it. And, what
seems more criminal, the owners OF
the dam did nothing to prevent the
tragedy, and when 1t came women
and children were the great sufferers.
There seems no legal way to get at
the perpetrators of what is, in fact, a
serious sin of omission. But the coun-
try contains many other death traps
and something might be done for the
future. These are not all, nor mostly
power dams or irrigation reservoirs. In
the great cities they are found, IN I'M
sanitary teneme nts, which also serve
as firetraps. and in factories OF similar
structure and arrangement The rail-
road which uses fiirnsy coaches instead
of steel cars, Is unnecessarily rlsklhs
life because life seems cheaper than
new rolling stock. But more and more
the railroads are improving in this re-
spect, as in others. If houses ana
factories did as We'll there would os
less danger. Steamboats, overloaded
and with rotten life preserVers, also
thrive. and unsanitary conditions
which waste life by slow process All
these things, and more, lnclualnS
many murderers unpun1shed, lndlcate
that we should not scott too much at
the low estimate put on life by the
stoics of the orient.-Atchison Globe
CLOTHES AND THE GIRL.
''She was dressed If cheap f1nery.
That " as a part of a police court story
one commonly heard. The gill had am
billions and she had done the best she
could. If she had the milllonalre's money
she would have dressed as we'll as anyone
for her purchase # cheap haery lndl-
Gates that she had ambition But the
sin of it is sha. Sucn girls attract ce-
spicable men. They see her cheap fire
~ and know that she is ambitious
Then they play upon her hopes and ac-
complish their lustful purposes. That
is whore the harm comes IN, not IN
the clothes. A girl ought to be en-
couraged to dress the best she can
Your clothes are probably about as
tawdy to the millionaire,s daughter as
this common girls are to you. Il y
after all a difference Of circumstances
The girl who dresses the best she
knows how is entitled to encourage
ment. We dislike to see this because
we understand that it is sign Tor
mean men. That's the only reason why
it should be discouraged Every girl
ought to be encouraged to dress the
hest she can with her means-LaW-
renee Journal World