davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
Mr.. Breitung Backs Down?

Mr. EDWARD y. BREITUNG seems to
he the sort Of man who can learn. Tn"
difficulties over the sailing of the Dacia
with cargo Of cotton for Germany
have visihly modified his propensity to
buy informed ships and launch them on
voyages Of doubtful neutrality lie has
turned to American built ships To- meet
the needs of his commerce and aims 10
acquire the good old Seguranca. about
which there can be no International
question.
Will the Administration he the only
agency in the country that fails to see
he situation with the same eyes as
Mr.. BREIrUNG: when he, the pioneer
in the ship buying enterprise, rca llzeS
that II Is an impossible game. will the
hackers Of the ship purchase hill 60
bindly ON. ignoring all warnings. all
idmonilions. all examples Of good sense,
ana insist on securing for the country
at fabulous expense choice collection
of Quarrcls of which no man can fore
see the consequences:
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
Let the Short Form Describe the vehl-
Gle We Ride In.

To THE EDITOR or THE SUN--Sr: The
word bus" Is a coloquial contraction of
omnibus" When first introduced II was
written "buss." Harriet Martineau, who
is quoted by sir James Murray AZ the
earliest English author to make use Of the
contraction. In her Veal and Woe" pub
lished IN 1899, spelled the word "buss."
FrdSer'S NdJd-tHo for 1897 tNvi.. $500
followed suit Dickens in his sketch The
Last cab Driver" GS3D and in BLEAK
House bS52J also favored "buss' az the
singular.
The first use Of the plural on record is
traced to "Belgravia' for 1851 Hun
dreds of husses scOur the trembling town
(page 73). Arthur Smith. author OF The
Thames Angler" lS6O). used the same
FORM and this found favor with the pa
irons OF tho knifeboard. those city clerks
who fathered the squh: why is Temple
Bar like lady's veil? Because II wants
to lie removed to make way for the
buses
The doubling Of the -" was offensive
to Thackeray and TO William Black. both
Of whom used the true form bus the
plural of which. II formed according to
rule. would be buses" but In this case
a. in many others, custom has upset the
rule and good usage prefers "busses."
New YORK, January 20. JElIu.
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30

573. 7O6.46, and since 1910 the cost OF
lighting has been included under the
Department Of Water Supply. Gas and
Electricity. The Thlrty-ninth street es-
adjustment does not show as large a
reduction in operating deficit as the
other. hut both ferries have made sub
stantlal and steady gains in receipts,
and the operation and maintenance ac-
counts indicate that economies have
been made in wages in the last two
years IN the face Of increasing traffic.
Whether this experiment in munich
pal operation has been worth its cost
Is a question in answering which the
service rendered. the welfare of the
city generally. the character VI the fer
rics as essential units in the highway
system and many other factors must hc
weighed. In TuE SUNS opinion 1t ha =
been very expensive, and rs good re-
suits might have been obtained under
contracts with private citizens at a
substantial saving Of money; and saw.
Ing money is a matter that hereafter
will engage the studlous attention VI
New York.
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
COMMON Law MARRIAGES.
An Exposition Of the Necessities of
Their Recognition

To TIRE EpIToH or THE SvN-Sir. why
do some newspapers deiame the common
Law 10y referring to the woman IN a GER
tain notorious case as the common law
WIFE Of tho man i'm the case
y man can have no more than one wifi
at common law: no man with lawful
wife can contract with another woman
any relation which the common Law rec
ogniEes as matrimonial In order that
marriage be recognized ny the common
law at all IL Ia essential that both par
ties he competent and free to marry
The policy of the common law to rccoE-
ui2e as valid certain uou-ceremouial mar
riagcs. provided the intent is matrimonial
and not meretricious Is humane and so
cially sound. whatever else may he said
of It. and IL does not extend To case
where one party already has a lawful
spouse
In these days, when the principles Of the
common law are our guides and means Of
salvation among myriad % hand made
and hand mo down statutes. II would he
Just as well II persons unlearned In the
law were not mi,led into thinking them
absurd aud mschevous. LAWYER
NEW YORK, January 90
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
What the Administration Knows About
Business.

At the outset of his Administration,
IN addressing Congress, President Will
SON told the party in power that 1t
must show its understanding of husl-
ness needs and how TO supply them.
On recent occasions the President has
changed his discourse from eXhortatiOn
TO assertion, as when in his Jack son
day speech ut Indianapolis this month
he said: The Democratic party does
know how 10 serve business in this
country"
There is no doubt that the President
is satisfied with the proofs OF business
capacity and understanding which his
Administration and his party have
given while in control Of the cOuntry's
affairs. But how for the comprchcn-
sion Of all men is this proof set forth
to-day:
Is Democratic understanding Of the
needs of business and how 10 serve
them proved in the fntuouS imbrciity
of one Of the fundamental fallacles on
which argument for the Administra-
TONS bin to create u Government mer-
chant marine is based Secretary Nc
Apuo and Secretary RtprnIp. the two
pulativc business men of the Presidents
Cabinet, say thai the American export ~
pays The ocean freight carrying charge.
President WILSON has said II too. Every
man who really knows anything about
the export trade says that the foreign
buyer pays the ocean freight charge.
Probably bcs%Uae this is testimony con.
trarY to the fantastic theories Of the
Administration the business men who
give It are unworthy of belief, BUS.
ness men have been similarly regarded
by the Administration in respect T.
their views of previous items of the
WilSonian legislative programme
How about some Of the business mat
ters OF Tr,Sn recollection In which the
influence of Secretary MCADOO. the evil
genius of the Wilson Admin >tratiOn
has been decisive: How about the cot,
ton loan fund fir Scot How about the
Treasurys forciblr flooding of the South
with emergency currency in accordance
with peculiarly MrAdood,e notion
thar large emissions ~ paper money
would relieve The paralysis Of the co.,
ton marker All the emergency cur
rency put out through the New York
banas has been retired, hui tbe Fedora,
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
Truly Refined Neutrality.

President WILSON'S personal attitude
during The present state of affairs in
Europe ought To- Ice aS consistent rs il
l. well considered aud firm.
Let rs hope that throughout the PC
riod If tension, Of caution. Of tempta.
tion to de- things apparently innocent
but really Offensive to one or The other
of the bcligercutS. the President If the
United States will not forget 10 scOwl
firrcely whenever he looks through an
east window Of the white House and
his eyes fall upon the tall shaft which
commentaries the deeds of GaoRGE
washington.
Mr.. WASHINGTON. from the point Of
Wow of Il certain hclligerent nation not
here mentioned by name was rebel
and an enemy Might not a glance Of
affectlonate interest at Mr.. WASHING
TONS monument he misinterpretcd;
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
The Wilhelmina's Cargo.

The German Federal Councils order
cNpropriating "all stocks Of corn, wheat
and Hour" on February will not affect
the Wilhelmina'S cargo. according to
Amba Ssador BERNSTORFF. He explains
that the order was promulgated TO
prevent fOodstufrS at present I'm Ger.
many from being corncrcd ana speru-
lated with To initiate prices. AT any
rate" he adds. the order does not at.
feet foods;uffS imported from neutral
countries and intended exclusively for
NONCOMPLIANCE" The Wilhplmina
sailed from New York on January 90
and will not reach Hamburg by Feb.
rua,y |. In her cargo are 100000
pounds of wheat, S4O.oOO pounds Of
corn ana 45o.Uon pounds of bran. he
sides large quantities of fresh and
smoked meats and dried fruits and
vegetables
Ambassador RrBNsTORFF, IL seems.
was officially instructed TO reass
American exporters Of foodStuffs. and
Il must he manifest that the German
Government would not deliberately
adopt any measure the effect OF which
would he to prevent the importation Of
much needed foodstuffs for the con
sumption Of its people In fact, on the
very day the order authorizing eXprO.
prlation was published a notification
came from Berlin that it was not TO
apply Il" fnodslufTS that might he
brought into the country.
Whether Great Britain will accept
the assurances of the German Govern
mcnt may he doubted. There was n
fair chance of the Wilhelmina's cargo
reaching Hamburg when she left New
York. but the prospect has been oh
secured by the order OF appropriation,
which. 10y the way. charged "all mnlci.
palIties" - set aside suitable supplies
Of preserved meats" The presumption
IS that England will take the view
that after February there will he
no satisfactory means Of determining
what supplies Of corn. wheat. -four and
preserved meats in Germany will he
consumed by tho civilian population
and what by the military forces. Sclz-
ure Of the Wilheminas cargo would
hr natural sequel 10 the order Of the
German Federal Council, notwlthstand.
ing the solicitude Of the German GOV
crnment to obtain supplies from abroad
for lis people.
The way to avoid complications would
seem TO be IN repeal the appropriation
order As the matter stands now, the
British Government may assert that II
has no alternative but to take cargoes
Of foodstuffs consigned to Germany and
pay for them,
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30

Reserve Board has had to stand the
on its head In an effort to get In the
emergency circulation put out in the
South
4 problem OF vast importance to the
cotton industry is presented by the ex-
traordnary measure known as the cot.
ton futures act or Lever act, which
Congress passed so obligingly last year
and the President FASTENED to sign.
How in this law did the Administrd-
lion party exemplify its knowledge ~
business needs, and how Is the Admin.
istration serving those needs under the
act to-day;
The Lever act Is hut one OF Il mum.
her of ways in which the Administra-
tion has catered to Southern clamor
inspired by business ignorance and pref
udicc II was designed 10 create a
perpetual and unlimited bull market
for cotton. and in the guise of regulat-
ing the market for cotton futures seeks
to govern the cotton trade Of the world.
10 contemplates only revolution In
the cotton market that's all. ON Feb.
ruary ~ the provisions Of this phe.
nomcnal law. demonstrating the Demo
cratic party's business understanding
and the Administration grasp OF busl.
ness needs, goes into effect.
As 1t stands II will automatically
destroy arhilrage trading between the
American and foreign cotton exchanges,
although the market for cotton is wholly
product Of the staple Is consumed
abroad. As the law stands no person
in the United States on or after Feb
ruary IS will he able, except under n
pruhbitive tax Of $40 bale to send
an order TO the Liverpool Cotton Ex.
change for the execution Of q contract
involving the future delivery Of cotton.
This promises to throw on the home
market the whole weight Of domestic
hedge selling
Under the Lever act the Secretary Of
Agriculture and the Commissioner Of
Internal Revenue. mctonymy for the
Secretary Of the Treasury, are charged
with the duty of framing rules to gov.
Crn the operation of the cotton market
in compliance with the new law. As
yet there Is no sign that they have
made any motion toward the promulgl-
tion of the necessary regulations. AMI
the cotton trade Is approaching Feb
ruary Is in utter darkness Ms to IN"
conditions under which dealings are to
he carried on. Does This show that
the Administration party knows the
needs of business and how to supply
them?
what does the Administration know
about business anyway
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
THE SMALL INVESTOR.
why Is He Never Considered; why
Has lie No Friends?

To THE EDITOR or THE SuN-Sir: why
has the small investor no friends? We are
an inoffensve lot. We first work hard
for our money then work still harder to
save 1t. That dono. we look about for a
good investment which will pay us for
the hardshlps endured in accommodating
these all too few dollars and be some
thing for the proverbial rainy day.
All big industrial concerns and railroads
court us. They want our money. After
investigation. when We think something
looks like a good Investment, we hand
over what to US seems 80 tremendous. our
little savings. Gladly do the corporations
accept them, and then promptly cease to
consider us at all. 1t Is true we are pre-
scented with statements regularly; but N
we are perpleNcd about some news con-
corning our company and get up the
courage to write, We receive a very
prompt. very courteous reply. In which
what one reads between the lines Is OF far
more Importance than the text, and 1t Is
invariably the same. mind your bust
ness"
Politicians and all sorts OF other people
arise to declare that the wor<mans wages
H1uhi HOt ne Teuuced or the FARMER \
profits diminished, but the poor small in
weston In expected TO accept reduced or
passed dividends in silence Mr.. Brandeis
told President willard Of the Baltimore
and Ohio road, at the recent hearing. that
the road should cease paying dividends
II II had not sufficient funds without in
creasing its earnings
The United States steel Corporation
recently declared that II would pass it's
dividend before 1t would .educc wages.
II has passed one. Are these things fair?
In times Of stress should not all concerned
have to suffer a little? Should the stock
holder have to bear the whole brunt OF
hard times? Most small investors are
employed in work not uniouized. II times
are bad their salaries can be cut as we'll
as their dividends Some. too, are wholly
dependent on dividends for their main
tenance and these are particularly hard
hit.
Can some ono tell me why We are never
considered why we have no friends?
NEW YORK. January ~. g. W. II.
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
The Municipal Ferryman.

New York city went into the business
Of fcrryman on large scale in 1909,
when the Staten Island boats were
taken over Two years later the Thirty
ninth street establishment was Ne
Quired by the municipality. In neither
venture was the community Influenced
by purely commercial considerations, the
necessity of maintaining communication
between the sections affected, the din
Guilty Of inducing private capital To
undertake the services and questions
involving franchises having In each
instance 10 he taken into account. \
ferry Is in fact only moving bridge
and It's maintenance cannot he allowed
10 depend on the showing made in i,s
profit and loss columns Yet the fiuan-
cial history of these ferry experiments
is Of interest.
The record Of the staten Island on
tcrpriSe, as expressed in dollars and
cents, for the period since 1908 is
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
ST. PAUL AND SUNDAY.
A Consideration Of the Means To Re
deem SINNERS.

To TUE EDrroR OF Tue SUN-.Sir. It
is fir cry from ST. Paul to Biliy sun
day, and to say that the latter is the
most wonderful preacher since st Paul"
is putting it pretty strong
! never heard either OF the men. and II
had ! dare say ! might he incompetent
to Judge of their respective merits hut
have read many OF the sayings Of both.
and 10 any one who would like To- COM
pare the relative merits OF the two, as
speakers and winners Of souls I would
recommend the perusal OF Paurs cNhO.ta-
tion at Mlletus. I'm Acts NN, and Billy
Sundays Imaginary dialogue with Jesus
In his recent sermon on Prayer"
Anything more puerile han the "dia-
loguc" II IL difficult to imagine II surely
must have depended upon the way In
which II was delivered for force. II 1t ever
had any. for so far as the words go Ger
tain passages of Scripture might have
been para phrased quite as cleverly by
the average eighth grade boy or girl
II Jesus were upon earth TODAY Tie
would not condemn the Unitarians nor
any other creed simply for being such
How do | know? | simply Judge 10y what
He said while lie was on earth once
John said to Him Master We saw one
casting out devils in thy name. and he
followeth not us and We forbade him be
cause he followeth not us"
Jesus replied Forbid him not. for
there IL no man which shall do a miracle
in my name that can lightly speak evil
If me"
Really, now. there are scores ~ hints as
TO methods 10 10 cleaned from the careers
Of Jesus and the Apostles n Mr. Sunday
only saw ~ 10 study their recorded lives
more closely w
EAST IAnpAM, Conn. January 2S
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
Frank Harris and His Lectures.

70 THE EpIToR or THE SUN--Sr: II is
III reasoning with woman, and your
critic of my lectures Mrs H." of Great
Kin. a. she signs herself I'm to-day's Sun,
~ delightfully."- feminine, for she goes to
lSr Imagination for her facts and takes
her feelings for arguments. | never at
tempted to prove that the English are
narrow and antiquated N their ideas be
cause trey live on an island" any more
than 7 "apotheosized" Germany as the
perfect state.
II Is possible tu admit that the Prus-
sian franchise discriminates against the
poor man as much ~ the British fran
chise and still To prove that there is in
huitely less poverty IN poor Prussia than
in rich England aud much less injustice
and inequality before The law as well be
cause the Judiciary in England j. Kept
aristocratic by enormous pay and by the
comforting OF utular distinctions as re-
ward of suhsrrN.enve.
"Paterualsm' may be more ohnoy Gus
to real lovers Of freedom" Ms Mrs. H."
argues. than corTurtion and inofiiciency.'
hut the reasoning would he more convinc-
ing II she had first defined "paternalism."
Does she seriously think that the "patrr-
ualism" which feeds poor school children
rs more obnoxious than the freedom which
allows them to starve'
Finally, to Mrs. H | 1n more than
ridiculous, crude and suspi-
cious cNcresceuCe on German
thought and sentiment"
My not on american" thought and
| sentiment? When I used the Saturday
RCrictC In London to defend the cause Of
! the South African Beers ! was assailed on
/ all hands as an American Just AS when
I warned Lord Salisbury tina he was out
! raging American sentiment on the Vene-
Zuelan question
have been "a crude and suspicious
| eNcrescencc" To English sympathiZers ever
since my FIRST book appeared. nov more
| than twenty years ago for even then a
| London paper prnfcssed itself unable to
understand why I had chosen "Ameri-
| cans and foreigners" for my heroes and
not a single Englisbman
| Am ! b. he condemned in America as a
| pro- German as | was condemned i'm Eng
| land for being a prO-loer, merely he
! cause I agree with such a representative
| American writer as David Graham Phil
| lips. who says I'm one Of his novels:
! think the strongest desire have Is TO
] see my country shake of the English innu-
/ ence--the self-riEh,eousness, the snobbish-
! ness They put snobplshncss into
| their church service ana create a snob god
who calls some Engiishmcn to be lords and
! others to he servants
! We both lmhihed our democratic ideas
during boyhood in the Middle West OF these
| United States FRANK HARMS.
New YuRK. January 80.
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
"0ur LOnRfellow."

70 THE EplToR or TIVE SuN--Sb, Ad-
miral Chadwick as usual is a charming
raconteur. Apropos OF his letter In THE
SUN, here II a lit;lc story heard vouched
for some years ago at Bowdoin College,
Longfclow's alma mater.
a young American journeying ny the
tidal train from Paris to London met two
agreeable Englishmen, one of whom quot 81
line from "Hyperion, adding only an
Englisnman could have written that"
Pardon me- said the American tho
author OF Hyperion is an American"
"Oh say now cried the other, that
absurd You Yankees are a smart peo-
pie, but you can't have our Longfelow"
After quietly repeating his assertion the
American changed the subject Later,
however, when the Britishers I'm parting at
Dieppe asked Wont YOU give US your
name and tell us where you learned so
much about our English poets?" he prof
fcred his card, Ernest Longfellow," and
said laughingly
That particular poet VIM my father,
and-we are both Yankees"
NEW YORK, January 80, T., n, c,
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
Let the Sons Of Immigrants Look
Behind Them.

II j. confidently asserted that SAM
UrL GoMrERs has sufficient influence "a
pass the immigration blll. with its lij.
eracy test. over the veto Of President
WILSON. who in Withholding from It
his approval followed the statesman.
like and patriotic examples Of WILLIAM
II. TAFT and GROVER CLEVELAND.
The votes 10y which this is to he ac.
compliShed are to come from 40 Rep.
rescntativcs and o6 Senators. These
mon are drawn from every part Of the
country. and their parentage includes
men ana women of every race. nation
atty and material situation.
When the question of excluding H.
Hterates j. put let these men survey for
moment the record of their ancestry
and their family connections. Let each
of them inquire Of himself whether
among his kinsmen. beginning with
those who brought his blood to Amer.
lea. there was none who was iliterate.
If the answer is in the negative, let the
queStioner survey his acQuaIntanceS.
and examine the status of their progeni-
tors in this detail. If it is in the affirm.
ative, let him consider diSpaSsionatcly
the contribution Of each iliteratc an
ccStor to the welfare of this nation
their worth rs citizens. their domestic
virtues and their vices. Let those Of
exclusively 'irrrate descent regard the
life stories of less fortunate men. calmly
and critically.
Having made tins intimate personal
examination let each Representative
and Senator vote as his reason and HI
conscience suggest
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30

MAN is very valuable. but its purport
is not new There is abundant proof
that the true way to fight the evil OF
liquor IL to provide rival and more
attractive excitement. This has al
ways been known in theory; in the
moneyed strata of society II has been
obviously true except in pathological
cases. But until the invention of the
movies" there was no interest Of such
wide appeal that the principle could he
practically tried out on the whole COM
munity. young and old, rich and poor,
gentle and simple. 1t is now demon
strated-and the experience becomes
more emphatic every day--that rec
reation appealing to the intelligence
Is the sure remedy for the Incorporate
use Of liquor Hundreds Of thousands
all over the country have been won
away from the bars and hundreds Of
thousands more will follow as they dis
cover the new attraction and fail under
its spell. Beside this competition how
clumsy a remedy is prohibition!
The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-30
John Muir's Observation Tree Identified

To THE EDITOR on Tue SuE--Su: John
Muir says on page 2Il OF his Mountains
of California" that he "made choice OF
tho tallrst Of a group Of Douglas spruces''
about 100 feet high, from the top OF which
for hours he enjoyed the rhapsody Of "a
Windstorm in the forests" lie wrote: Il
could distinctly hear the varying tones
Of individual trees, spruce and fir and
pine and lealess OAK, even when the an
them swellcd to its highest pitch" When
and where did he climb a pine? Under
the circumstances the choice OF a tree was
a serious matter" Would he have been
safe on the top OF a pine whore trees
were falling for hours AZ tie rate Of one
every two or three minutes? "The brushy
top" OF the tree he says he climbed was
swirling and rocking In wild ecstasy"
Would II have been as fine "A place to
hear from as n pine? Why does THE
SUN say he climbed pine?
JAMES GEARsLEY.
PHILADELPHIA, January -.