About "a Friend."

If Gov. Luce had been honest in his pretended frlendship for the University would he not have quietly gone to the regents and said to them: "Gentlemen, I nm opposed to this expenditure for laboratory room, and if you ask for It in the appropriation bil!, I shall have to veto it. Wonld it not be better for you to leave it out and save public discussion of the matter? " In that quiet, unostentatious way, he could have accomplished his purpose and saved trouble. But no. He tacitly approved the whole thing in hi9 message, said nothlng to the regents, nothing to the committees, nothing to nnyone (save perhaps Private Secretary Campbell), until action had been taken by the legislature, when he pompously flung it back with a veto. Does not his action prove him not only unfair but slúhüy Cllshonest? Does not such "friendship " stnack of demagogy ? If Mr. Luce is honest in desiring economy, why does he not scrutinize the terrible leak in the public document printing? Thousands of dollars yearly, (we doubt not more than enough to pay the entlre coat of running the University), is paid by this State for utterly valueless printing. Of the thousands of copies of books sent continually to county cleiks for free dlstribution, how many of them are of any value ? How many sets, complete or partial, of Joint Documents or of the Senate or House Journal can be found in Washteoaw oounty to-day ? We venture to as&ert not one, save in the horrible University Library, and yet hundreds of them have been sent here. There is n place, Mr. Luce, for you to work out some true economy. There is a place where the people's money is squandered, wasted, practically thrown lnto the rag-bag, and yet you have not the courage to open your head about it. You dare not lift your little finger to prevent tilia shameful waste. You preach economy by kicking at the University, where every dollar invested lias been an honor and a glory to the State, but where real waste and extravagance exist you are as silent as the grave. Again, Mr. Luce, upon the board of regents is placed the enlire responsibility for the management of the University linancea, and for the government of the institution. Upon tbis board of regents we fiad ExGov. Austin Blair, our old war governor ; a man who successf ully carried on the affaire of the State in dark and perilous times; a man whose adniinistratlons were marked with wisdom and sound judgment; a man whom even his political foes respected. Are you prepared to advise kim as to his duty ? Anotlier man on this board is Chas. O. Grosvenor, a man whose business qualiIcatiou8 and intcgrity are unirnpeachable, and against no act of Lis life resta tliere a suspicion. Can you lecture hini upsn liis duty ? James Shearer, of Buy City, than whom no better or more respectad business man can be found in the Saginaw Valley ; can you jjive Uxm, points in business atfairs? Then there are Messrs. James F. Joy, for instance, Arthur M. Clark, Chas. J. Willett, Chas. R. Whitman, Moses W. Field, and Chas. 8. Daper, the other regents. Are they not in their combined wisdom quite as capable of caring for the Unlversity and its aftairs as yourself, Mr. Luce, who have never come near its halls or iuquired into its wants or management ? Yet you cast a slur upon these men, and intímate that thelr management of the University has not been what it should be. For shaine, Mr. Luce. Come out from behind the mask, aud acknowledge you took the fetand you did out of a desire to gain a Hule chcap notoriety ; and also that yon are wllling to sacrifico the great University of your State, for tlie sake of obtalning the good wilt of a Detroit newspaper that deeires to crush Michigan 's entire educational system that dcuoiuinational schools may be establlshed in its place. Qov. Luce, see liere a minute. Last year thia county paid for "military purposes " $2,001.35. That is what the annual encampment cost Washtenaw county, while the "general and other expenses "of the Univercity costthis county $1,634.14. Do you see the point ? Wliich expenditure was the most económica! to the state? Could yoH spy out a place for honest retrenchment there ifyou saw fit? Thig county paid into the state treasury $l!',018.72 for "general purposes" last year. How much of that, think you, went to pay for gratuitous publications pent to county clerks to be sold for paper rags, becnuse not considercd ot suHicient value to bo (aken away from hia office by tliose to whom tlicy werc scut ? Just look about you, Mr. Luco, f yon are so anxious to gaiu a reputation forccoiiomy. Wlth tbcse facts staring us in the face yon will bave to excuse us, if we attrilmte your acts to other rensons tban cconomical on es. Mr. Luce, tbe (iovernor of tbis St:itc. can go down to Detroit on a jualntlng trip, and hob-nob witli tbe common council of that city, but wben askcd to visit the Unlvtaity, he shunned the invitation. lt is his duty as Oovernor of Michigan to i.-ii all State institutions and flnd out tlieir nceds. In this lic bas neglected his duty. He bas allowed bis prejudice to carry liiiu away, and a mu who is governcd by bis prejudices is not a iit man to bc governor of tbis State. It is to be hoped that tbe Governor and bis private secretary will not flnd anything else in tbe State to vent thelr ipleen against. Wc are proud to note that uearly evury labor vote la the lcgislature is la favor of tbe University. The laborers are the ones who prolit by fice education. Thcy know well what high priced schools moans to them. Thcy know that if tbe time sh;il] ever come when the cducation.il systcmof Michigan shall be ovcrthrown, that It meaiis that thcir children sball grow up iu ignorance - (and when tbat day comes woe to tliis republie). Thcy know also that tbc University is tbe crowning glory of our system, and that if their children can gradúate f rom its halls they have won a high standing from wbicb to begin tbe battle of life. IIow is it Governor y We understand that fees for forcign students at the Agricultural college have been lixedat$15! Aud this with jour consent and approval 1 Como now, Cyrus, let's know something about this. You know you made a terrüilo liowl over $25 beiug the fee at tlie Univcrsity. "What's sauce flr the geose is sauce for the gander." It is uufortuuate for the republican p.uty that the paper which aspires to be its organ of the State has not one jood word to say for the University in its time of necd. In fact it looks as if the tables had turned, and that the democratie presa had become the champions of f ree schools and universal education. The Lansing J'epubliean credits Mr. Luce with this efrotisticnl rcinark : "The great bulk of the people are gratilicd with my veto of the University bill.1' Yes, the great bulk of the people believed that the services of Mr. Luce wcre uiily worth $800 as governor - and tliey so voted. The Fliut Ulobe, the eüilor and owner of which is a University (TadMte, and who lias had the Dulvenity printing for the past two years, prints the governor's veto message of the University appropriatious, but so fur as we observe without ornament whatever. Is it po8sible that ilr. Lu-ce went to Detroit without bis Campbell V "Wliy, it must have spolled the show.