cured through the direct action of the legislative bodies behind the bureaus. They are very poorly equipped. They need more men and more money. They need experience, which can only come through the influence of the executives of the States. With a longer tenure of office and an increase in the equipment and means of the bureaus, their future usefulness can be made to far excel that of the past and of the present. The lines of work which they can undertake are numerous and inexhaustable. Knowledge of production is absolutely essential for the adjustment of many of the difficult questions we are facing today, and any contribution, through statistical investigation or otherwise, that will enable both the capitalist and his employee to more clearly understand the real conditions of production should be welcomed by all elements of the comumnity. The bureaus must be kept in the future, as in the past, free from partisanship. The statistician is not a statistican when he is an advocate, no matter how skillful he may be in the manipulation of figures. He must be impartial, he must make his investigations without any reference to theories to be proved or disproved, and give to the world the actual results of his inquiries. This country lacks trained statisticians. We have no means for training them, except in the practical work of the statistical offices of the State and federal governments. These offices, therefore, become a school for the future, and the statisticians of this country that are to be of great service to the government must acquire their knowledge through the statistical offices; but no work can be accomplished successfully without money and without men. We must look, therefore, to the legislative branches of our various governments for the increase of the usefulness and for recognized influence of our bureaus of statistics of labor THE VALUE OF STATISTICS TO NEBRASKA The Bureau of Labor and Industrial Statistics seeks, by the dissemination of official statistics to portray to the world the commercial, social and labor conditions of the commonwealth and the resources which we have, not only to support, but to further increase the industrial enterprises within our borders. Its reports and various publications are for the purpose of conveying to the people of our eastern states, the information that Nebraska compares well with the leading states of this republican Union of ours and to dissipate the many laughable and ridiculous impressions which exist concerning the state's primitiveness. It desires to enlighten eastern capital to the fact that the buying of Nebraska real estate is a safe and extraordinarily paying investment. It wishes to inform the farmer not entirely satisfied with his lot in the congested farming communities of the east that here in Nebraska we have lands which may be purchased at a much cheaper price than that which he now possesses, but which can be excelled no where in fertility and productive capacity. The reports are desired to herald to the higher class of foreign immigrants that the land of freedom and plenty, in search of which they bade farewell to a land of monarchial institutions and peonage, can be found upon the broad valleys and rolling uplands of a country, of which a noted traveler once said "The Sun and Moon conceived and the issue was Nebraska." To the lawyer and physician, the merchant and business man, the writer and teacher, the mechanic and laborer, in fact all those endowed with brain and brawn and with the attributes which would contribute to the upbuilding of a high standard of citizenship, are extended inducements, which the natural qualifications of Nebraska hold forth, together with the hearty welcome of the people of Nebraska. The bureau desires to attract attention to that "Star of Empire" which, to the easterner, is perched upon the western horizon and which impresses all with the unquesionable truth that "Westward Ho! the Star of Agriculture has taken its way." Nebraska today ranks third in the production of corn. Yet little more than a biennium has passed since a high official of the U. S. Department of Agriculture refused to include Nebraska within the corn belt and it necessitated the pressure of statistics and a trip of observation to convince him of his error and compel his withdrawal of the embarge placed upon the state's agricul tural standing. If such an opinion could exist in the mind of an official whose duties should necessarily ecquaint him with the agricultural status of states, what must be the opinion in the minds of thousands of easterners less qualified to judge? Is there not a vast field for the education of the east to the advantages and resources of the state? There lies the great duty of the Bureau of Statistics. When conscientiously and honestly collected and compiled, there is no more powerful educational medium than statistics. When official and impregnated throughout with the seed of truth, not partiality, they are indisputable. The statistician in charge of the compilation of state statistics has no other aim or object than to have exhaustive figures permeated throughout with truth and reliability. For him to have any other object is as great a crime and felony upon his part, as is the misappropriation of public funds by a trusted servant of the people. The former swindles and robs the state of prestige, the latter of its funds. The latter can be repaired and reimbursed by him and his bondsmen; the once plundered name of a state can only be regained in its former worth by years of effort and diligent use of the truth once assaulted. Therefore, the statistician when once the statistics of his department have established their reliability, has resting upon him a responsibility correspondingly as great as any other servant of the people. From the many misleading reports and "estimates" issued by boards of trade, grain associations, real estate organizations and other institutions having personal purpose buried in their figures, the searcher for honest, reliable statistics and information must turn for his relief to the figures prepared and published by the officials of the commonwealth and which he knows are clothed with official accuracy. It is, therefore, proper to judge the Bureau of Statistics as a part of the educational machinery of the state. Not so much for the purpose of educating the residents thereof, but to educate the vast number of people without the state to a full realization of the resources and industries of the state and the possibilities of profit in investments which may exist here and not elsewhere. Nebraska is growing exceedingly fast. Its industries are increasing in number, capital and the value of their manufactured products. The value of the products of our factories in 1904 totaled the magnificient figure of $175, 000, 000 as compared with $143,000,000 in 1900. Statistics of the census of 1900 show Nebraska to have over $5,000,000 more invested capital in its industries than Kansas and that the value of the raw material used in our factories is $1,000,000 greater in value than that used in the industries of Iowa. While these figures demonstrate our state as ranking well with our sister states in industrial matters, statistics on agriculture give Nebraska even better rank. The state ranks third in the production of corn, Illinois and Iowa only outranking us. In the production of the five principal cereal crops, viz. corn, wheat, oats, rye, and barley, the state ranks second only to Iowa among the states comprising the Trans-Miss |