Democratic Sentinel, Volume 10, Number 16, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 May 1886 — How They Love the Soldier. [ARTICLE]

How They Love the Soldier.

The inmates of the Soldiers’ Home at Bath, m this state, have the audacity to think and vote as they please. A good many of them vote the Republican ticket, but more of them vote the other way. Out of the whole numb r—about 600 —enough voted the Democratic ticket to give Cleveland twentyfive plurality over Blaine and Hill fiift-eight plurality over Davenport. This condition of affairs excites the wrath of the Republican politicians of the town. “We are the soldiers’ friends,” they say, “and they ought to vote as ve direct. If they will not do so they shall not vote at all.” Accordingly the Republican election officers of Bath have refused to accept the votes of these veterans, on the ground that the Soldiers’ Home is a kind of state alms-house and that its inmates are paupers not entitled to vote. The question is now in a local court in a suit brought by one of the soldiers for ssog damages against the election officers who refused his vote. As the sum is too small, however, to permit carrying the case to the Court of Appeals and the Republican lawyers on each side have agreed to submit a stated set of facts without argument, there is some natural fear that the matter will not be fully considered. Under these circumstances Mr. Wolf, the Democratic repres ntative of the district, introd ;ced a bill in the Assembly giving the inmates of the Home the right to vote. By a strict party vote the Republicans refused to allow the third reading of the bill. A similar bill, introduced by Mr. Murphy in the Senate, was sent by Republican votes to the judiciary committee, which will undoubtedly smot er it. No concealment was made of the partisan bias that controlled the action of the Republicans. Mr. C. D. Baker, in the Assembly declared that the matter was a political one, and that the soldiers of the Home were overwhelmingly Democratic. We have here a fine test of the sincerity of the profession of devotion to the cause of the soldiers made by Republican politicians. Like their devotion to the cause of the negro, it is nicely proportioned to the number of votes it brings them. So long as an appeal to war feelings can secure them the votes of the soldiers, they are the soldiers’ friends, but if these people propose to vote the Democratic ticket then the Republican politicians have no further use for them. They are ingrates; perhaps “traitors. In this particular case, having accepted the State’s generous offer to provide for them, and having surrendered their pensions to help support the institution, they are branded as paupers. Why? Simply because it so happened that a. majority of them vote the Democratic ticket. What do the Veteran’s Rights Asrociation and Grand Army of the Republic think

of this treatment of their infirm comrades by the Republican party?—New York Star. • The Louisville Commercial recalls the first case of boycotting on record, as recounted byrEsop, and tells the story with an application to the present difficulties: “According to zEsop’s story,” says the Commercial, “the different members of the body -the legs and feet and hands and arms and eyes and mouth and tongue and teeth and all the rest—became dissatisfied with the fact that they had continually to labor and endure troublefand hardship all for the benefit of the belly, which luxuriously enjoyed the results of all their exertions, and lived in ease and idleness from the proceeds of their labor. The injustice of this was so apparent that only one or two had to mention it before they all took it up, and a meeting was called in which, after much indignant eloquence was expended, it was unanimously resolved that no member would thereafter furnish or help in furnishing food for the jelly until it abandoned its luxu-

rious ways and shared in their work. In other words a strict boycott was ordered against the belly, and at once put in force. The result was not propitious. It is true that the belly at once began to grumble and suffer, but at the same time began to swim, the arms to dwindle, the feet to stumble, the knees to bend, and every one of the boycotting working members to fail and lose its powers. After a few days of this experience the members found that they could not get along without the belly any better than it could get along without them, and that no matter how hard work any. of them might do, it amounted to nothing unless the belly was cared for. Another meeting was called, at which, as the result of their experien e, it was declared that the belly, while apparently living idly off the labors of others, really did continual and important work essential to the good of all, and the boycott was unanimously declared off. It is worth while for labor and capital to look up their 2Esop’s fables and give a little consideration to this old story. Capital is like the belly and labor is like the members. Capital owes its existence to labor, but labor can do nothing without capital, and the industrial system of the country can never thrive when either tries to oppress the other.”

The South Bend Register,founded by Schuyler Colfax, sums up the financial operations of President Cleveland’s administration as follows: “During the first nine months of the present fiscal year ending June 30, 1886, there was an increase of over $7,000,000 in the revenues of the government as compared with the corresponding period of last year and the expenditures of the first nine months <f this y ar were over $16,000,000 less than the expenditures for the same period of last year, making a net gain of over $23,000,000.” □lt is related that when the first Maine railroad was started, about forty years ago, W. C. Pitman of Bangor was a conductor. One rainy morning he started from Waterville, and, on arriving at North Belgrade, a flag station, not seeing any flag, ran by the station. Just as the train passed the red flag was run out for some passengers to get on. Mr. Pitman stopped his train and asked Stephen Richardson, the station, why he did not display the flag before. Mr. Richardson replied, “Be you a-goin to run your train in rainy weather? I didn’t think you would.” “Say, Mrs. Smith,” complained an irate boarder at a Bond street boarding house the other lay, pointing to a dish in front of him, “you shouldn’t put such stufl as that before hogs.” “That’s so,” the old lady snappishly remarked, “here, Jane, bring that dish to this end of ths table.’”

Peterson’s Magazine for June is an unusually brilliant number, even for that popular monthly. It opens with one of the most beautiful, of steel-engravings, “Butterflies”; has a superb double-sized colored fashion-plate; also a steelengraving and a most exquisite colored pattern, “Design in Strawberries and Leaves,” for a sideboard cov r. The original tales, illustrated articles, etc., etc., more than sustain the high character of this lady’s-book. Two stories alone are worth the price of the number: one by A. Bowman, and the other by Frank Lee Benedict. We do not see how any lady can do without this magazine. Now is a good time to subscribe, to begin with the July n .mber, when a new volume commences: a good time, at least, for those who do not wish back numbers from January. The price IS BUT TWO DOLLARS A YEAR. For clubs, it is even cheaper. Beautiful premiums also are given for getting up clubs. The publisher claims it is ‘the cheapest and best.’ Try it a year. Address Charles 1 bterson, 306 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.