The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1875-03-25
Impudence and Want.

1t is to be feared that in the destitute parts Oh
Kansas, the gratitude of deserving poverty y
fast giving place to the cheek and insolence Vi
professional beggary. Iu place of thanks iof 80
sistance, it is now the rule to meet with '"pu-
dent demands, upon terms dictated by those VINO
are to receive. The following paragraph, from
the Jewell City Diamond, is fair ILLUSTRATION OIL
the prevalent style out west:
mw. b.v. not pubished the County Bond IrOn-clad
Mortgage help youcan o ~ our IA -
ous q be SecsOn Of the Supreme
Court al such laws are unconstitutional we nope tne
ESat thew cannot gel wheat eggng the little corn
needed and live on dodgers next oeiore tney No's
bond or sign note for seed in that way.
Newspapers in the East are likewise severe in
their censures of the Kansas Legislature, for not
donating all the surplus money in the Treasury
for the benefit of the sufferers, and intimate that
Kansas wants the people of other States to feed
her, while she does nothing to help herself
There is nothing more unjust than this. The
truth is all Of Kansas suffered terribly, last sea
son. But a. the gIasshoppers stopped to clean
the country rs they went, much of the crop In
Eastern Kansas was beyond their power to To-
tally destroy by the time they reached here. Bat
they did much harm; the dronth had done more
before they came; and the chinch-bug finished
up what they left. The result was, that whiie
there was no actual starvation in the Eastern
Counties, there was barely enough raised TO car
~ them through the Winter. Some raised III
tie more than was sufficient, and very many not
enough. Yet, in spite of all this, the Eastern
Counties, have sont large amount OF aid to the
west-vsstly more, in proportion to their a0iiity,
than any locality in the Eastern States. And
yet, because they refused, in addition, to empty
the State Treasury into the pockets of the peo-
pie Of Western Kansas, they are charged with
refusing to help their own people, while asking
others to do It'll
What has been the conduct of the destitute
Counties, in this emergency The Legislature
offered them $95 900 from the Treasury ior SIX
years, ,cifhoat interest They demanded aoha-
zion of the amount outright; declared they
would take nothing if they could not get that'
and would defeat all the appropriations Tor car
rying on the State Government. They failed TO
accomplish the latter, but are carrying out the
refusal to accept the loan. We believe that
committee of conference on the subject offered
to compromise by making the loan ten years with
out interest, and that was indignantly rejected!
What could be fairer than a loan of money to
buy seed for Spring planting, not to be paid Tor
six or ten years, and free from INTEREST," The
destitute Counties paid scarcely a mite Of the
taxes from which the surplus in the Treasury
arose; yet they demand that, after doing all they
were able to feed and clOthe them, the Eastern
Counties shall also gire them 100000 raised by
their taxes for carrying on the Governm ent!
Was there ever greater sublimity of cheeki
Perhaps one in twenty of the farmers Of East
eru Kansas have come through the Winter with
little money ahead-and most Of those, from
the fact that they had surplus Of produce and
stock over from the previous year. But a large
majority, after struggling through the Winter,
come out deeply in debt, and are now, by the
score, mortgaging their farms for small sums Of
money, for which they are paying from IL to "a
Per cent. interest, fire years time. This is
the case not only in Doniphan County, but in
every old settled County in the State. How they
would embrace with joy proposition to loan
them money for six years, WithOHt interest! Ihey
would not take it as an indgnty, and repel the
offer with insult. But the Counties that have
been fed through the Winter on public charity,
demanded in addition, that the funds in the
State Treasury be donated to them. Ii strikes us,
that people who are reported as being willing
and anxious to work at anything that may be Of
fered them in order to bread for their fam
lies, are recovering their dignity rapidly, when
they refuse to take anything except as free gift
For Eve years past, the State has had to furnish
those people with seed wheat and corn, and the
disease has about become chronic. 1t is con-
slant demand for aid systematic abuse and SLAM
der of those who are doing all in their power to
render it; and an insulting demand for pocket
money after their bellies are full!