The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-02-18
ON SECOND THOUGHT
By JAY z. HOUSE
tFrom Philadelphls Public Ledger.l

st HAVE been waiting patiently for
you to dispose of the case of 'Anas-
tase' and his heiress wife," writes
correspondent Cant you spare
about ten lines of the column so that
We may consider it settled once and
for all timer"
We don't need ten lines; we can do
| it in three. The manner in which
"Anastase'' ard his heiress wife were
bounded by newspaper reporters and
photographers was disgusting and dis
graceful.
Not long ago we received an invita-
ton to contribute money to the build
ing of a church in the old home town
former Schoolmate. She reeited the
fact that when she was left a widow
with two small children the church
of which she was member and for
which she sought a contribution had
come to her assistance and had en-
abled her to keep her family together
and rear and educate her son and
daughter.
Now, she is a worthy woman, and
her church did a creditable thing
when it came to her assistance in her
hour of need. The point we make is
that any American community will
eheerfully assist any person who hap
pens to need it, whether the person
| assisted is worthy or unworthy. The
American public is the softest of
marks. 1t not only takes care of
worthy poor, but it contributes hun
dreds of thousands of dollars every
year to the support of the indolent,
the inefficient and the criminal.
A number of persons have offered
to argue the farm question with us
There's nothing doing. The farm
question is settled; we settled it,
When a man consents to argue any
proposition he has laid down, all he
does is weaken his case.
Babe" Ruth,s demand for $4,000
a year and $500 additional for every
+, home run is reasonable enough. If
| the. babe" reads the New York
papers, he is entirely justified in be-
| lieVing he is worth it. We believe,
| however, that the New York sports
writer's should be assessed the diff
ference between the ."Babe's' actual
value to a ball team and his salary
demands. They created the fictitious
value which EXISTS in the "Babe's''
mind and they should pay the bill,
! whatever it is.
The case of Eugene V. Debs frankly
puzzles us. Mr.. pebs' release from
prison was signalized by the greatest
flow OF mush ever exuded in behalf of
one accorded the courtesy of a cons
mutation of his sentence. The news
papers were sticky with it. We APP
pretended it would continue to flow
dried up within a week. There has
been practically no newspaper men
ton of Debs since.
Probably Mr.. Debs is once more the
victim of capitalism. > Likely there is
/ a hi1 ma .a1fi
of print. 1t is plausible to assume
that the capitalists who control the
newspapers have issued ans order tC
that effect. If such order has been
issuedH we wish to say that we APP
prove of it.
Probably every man has in his mind
the conception ef particularly de-
| sirable and praiseworthy feat which
he never expects to perform. 1t may
ton of such feat is to arise at con
venient hour partake of an appetizfne
breakfast, smoke a good cigar and
then so into the alley in the rear OF
the apartment in which we reside and
shoot fish peddler. We dream OF
that feat a good deal and because OF
our unfacility with small shooting
irons, have always envisaged it as be-
ing performed with pump gun.
We know. of course. that we shall
never get around to it, Should we
shoot a fish peddler We probably
| should be hanged for it; of a certain
/ ty, we should be imprisoned for many
years. To US it would be a most igno-
mfnious and humiliating thing to be
hanged or imprisoned for such an Of
Tense, and the thought of such igno-
miny and humiliation likely will al
| ways restrain US. But it is a beautiful
thought, and we intend to go on
dreaming it to the end of time.
The American family has many fine
qualities, but it will exaggerate. We
never knew one that didn't claim to
be feeding its neighbours dog.
When we lived in the middle west
we owned a dog. He was fed regular
~ at home. He had a dainty appetite
| and his bill for fancy victuals ran into
impressive figures. But eleven fami-
II