Life — March 1, 1906 — page 14: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

“White there ts Life there's Hope.” VOL. XLVI MARCH 1, 1908. 17 West Touery-Fiest Ste’ No. 1218. 7, New Yor HERE are two opinions about the hospitalities that were shown to the Chinese Com- missioners who lately visited us. 1» One is that it was the > part of wisdom as well as of courtesy to wel- come these Oriental dig. nitaries, and make things as pleasant as pos- sible for them, and show them as much of the ap- paratus of ourcivilization as they cared to see. It was argued in behalf of this opinion not only that it was our duty as Americans to facili- te the spread of civilization by ex iting ours to the Com issioners, but tit especially behooved us to make as agreeable an impression on them as we could, because so large a fraction of their countrymen had taken a dis vod ke to tts, on too rounds, anc syeotted our g The other opin- ion forth in Mr. Brisbane's Hearst's Evening Journal, for one place, is that we I con horrible funkies to be those Commis: all entertainment of sioners, and th ne ends of has simply served hen group of American capitalists who want to see the exclusion laws repealed and the country flooded with Chinese ment and de? coolies to the impoveris basement of American workingmen. We think The sooner China pulls her © first opinion is the bet ter one, self together and develops organiza tion enough to take care of herself in this aggressive world, the better it will It is a bad thing to have a huge like China lie exposed to the intrusions of raids of the he for mankind defenseless thing the bumptious and the When the _ missionaries. who have contribs awakening of China rapacious, ed so much to the and the traders *-LIFE- and other intruders, and the Japanese, have brought China along to a point where she can ct decent behavior from every foreigner within her bor- ders, and decent treatment for every Chinaman away from home who de- serves it, all the world will be safer and better behaved for it. A country without a backbone invites insolence nd it is highly inexpedient that those incidents of conduct should and abuse, be anywhere encouraged We hoye to sce China strong enough to expel all the missionaries and other foreigners whom she doesn't want, and and protect all wise enough to welcome those, missionaries included, whom she ought to want, To bring her to that dition of efficiency and. self-respect is one thing the missionaries have been We have reached that condition already, and there is no visi- working. for. ble prospect that we will allow any mare Chinese coolies to come into our country than our people find expedient That we and should be more polite ing in our exclusions is de- nd the boycott on .\merican diserimina sirable goods in China shows an effective de sire to improve our manners, for whic we cannot be 100. grateful We hope the Commissioners had a good time education, cotton. spinning, race cide, stock watering, street railrc ordnance. the Women's Christian Temperance Union, jury trials and ou} other institutions, which will be pful to their very very he country There is no they trying to hide so ambitions v light as hel, Better measure ours under aL it out candle-powers and let the benighted world have what it wants of it at current rates. 3 z & HE pay of army officers is under discussion by correspondents of the Sun, The discussion was begun by a writer who pointed out that the present rate of pay was fixed thirty- scale of since increased so five years ago, and that the had advanced so and its cost had living much rg then puch, that officers’ pay no longer suf- ficed to maintain married men with small families in such simple decency as the expected. The der officers with children to educate suffered most, this writer thought, and he held, for example, that $2,800, the pay of Government mounted captain who. had served twenty years, was not cnough maintain an officer over forty years. old with a children, wife, and to educate two There is no need of going into de- tails here about what army pay onght xpenditures the un- avoidable cost of twiforms and One new expense is acquisition of the are sent to be. or what cou trements involve. incident 10 the Philippines, Most serve officers there to every five years, and have cither to take their families with maintain ely at cither of which courses calls for parrassing disbursements, The one fact that the army pay-rate was estab- lished thirty-five years ago is a suffi- gument for its readjustment. them or them ‘separa home, cient a In that time the price of living, stimu- lated by the tariff, has about dou- Med, and salaries fixed thirty-five ye ago will not go more than two-thirds as far, at the outside, as the they established brings far more in thi did thirty-five ye who have fixed incomes suffer. went Labor country than it Ts ago, but people All Gov- when were ernment em yees—soldiers, cers, Congressmen, judges, consuls, ambassadors, Cabinet officers and the re who are working for pay that was fixed thirty-five years ago, really had their salaries cut at cne-third. It is a wrong condition of things, and especially hard on the offi rs of the army and navy, whose ser- vice is permanent, and, when long con- tinued, unfits them occupations. Of course be high in for success in other erage pay can never x service where many men are employed, but it should be high enongh not only to attract men of the quality such service requires; but to maintain them with goed man- agement in such modest comfort that they can meet the social and profes- sional demands that are incident to their calling without being h: sed, to the prejudice of their equanimity, by money troubles. comicbooks.com