St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-05-25
AS Speaker Of the House He
Permits His Henchman to
Liken Minnesota Mep- /
chants to Bed Bugs
Of a Thipd-Rate
Hotel.
His Artful Dodging the Off
spring Of His Overween-
ing Ambition to Be
Governor.
st. Paul Dispatch, March 4, 1887.
A MERCIFUL PROVIDENCE

81
Through all the ages no answer has set at
rest that overcoming question ''why, with
an omnipotent God of love at the helm of the
universe does the world groan in affliction:''
After the cyclone, earthquake or pestilence.
shattered humanity, lifting its Inundated
face thanks merciful Providence for that
which remains and hopefully attempts to
extract the wine of joy from its cup of
sorrow. The true and reyerental
patriot will carry his religion into
his politics, and now that the end has
apparently come of the woes inflicted by the
''Hari Kari of last autumn, when the old
Window ring of the Republican party of
of Minnesota attempted to resume, now that
legislature resultant OF disatfection with
large increase of Democrats, has had its ses-
sion of sixty days, and by constitutional limi-
taIinn expires at noon to-day. in humiliation
we thank a merciful Providence that all is
not lost. and with pardonable cIedulity are
in search Of the wine of joy after a cup of
sorrow administered by what has been very
like political cyclone, earthquake and pes
thence commingled.
During those sixty days no truer or more
timely word was spoken than Wednesday
last when Mr.. Gregory, of saltwater, in sup
port of mis- legislation to take recess for the
remainder of the session, said, 1.-The time of
the legislature has been frittered away in
talk. and the session has been burlesque
of the worst character" The people of the
state viii in time come to a realizing sense of
the truth of those words, and the response
bility will rest where ii righttully belongs.
The session of two years ago was criticised
for its extravaganza, but the sum total of its
appropriations appear economical with those
of the TWenty-tifth session: especially so
when we consider the exigency of the for
mer period incident to the disastrous CON
fiagrations at the saltwater prison and the
st. Peter asylum. By comparison of
the volume and character of the legis-
lation the members of that for
mer session may gloat with Unsuitable
pride. The responsibility for the failure of
the twenty fifth session will unquestionably
be fixed upon the house OF representatives,
and there it rightly belongs. The Dispatch
need ask no pardon of its readers in remind
ing them of its editorial attack upon the can
didacy of w. II. Merriam as speaker. Item
phatically disavowed personal hostility to
Mr.. Merriam, but gave facts and deduced con-
illusions which displayed that for the best
interests of the state and OF the Republican
party the selection of our genial banker
friend as the speaker of the house would be
impolic and unwise. We then said the rec
suit of the coming session will be largely des
termined by the character and makeup OF
the speaker of its house. Mr.. Gregory told
the truth and might have elucidated
when he said that the time OF
the house had been frittered away i'll
talk Has not deal of the talk come
from the vaporIng few who were foisted into
prominence by a speaker who, DESTROYS to
conserve his personal political Interests, gave
to those very men POSITIONS OF prominence
III the committees. and by so doing gave the
power to disorganiZe and to make bedlanl
oft Of what should have been deliberaiiye
assembly? Mr.. Merriam became speaker
through his pledges to make Mr.. DonnelF
prominent and if Mr. Donnelly, with his ac-
customed yaporing, has impaired his char
acter to the legislation, who other than the
speaker is to blame? A verbatim report of
the proceedings of the house would disclose
the fact that license was repeatedly given by
q Epr IN MT wi < m IllV
disgraceful. Aside from the frittering away
of time, they tended to so reduce the NOR
ale of the assembly that it deye1iorated to a
depth without precedent. We have not the
space in which TO cite a number of incidents
of license, but mere reference TO one or two
VIII illustrate. Mr.. Rogers of Ramsey, had
assured the house that the merchants
OF the cities of Minnesota felt deep interest
in the welfare of the agricultural classes;
Mr.. Donneliy replied by comparing those
merchants to the bedbugS of a third-rate
hotel, and told a threadbare story 10 enforce
this vulgar comparison. Again. Mr.. Don
nelly's attack upon the supreme court OF the
state was TO the last degree reprehenSible and
unpaTliamentary, but the speakers gayel was
not heard, nor rebuke of any sort.
Whence the vacillatiOn and indecision in
the daily routine of business in the house,
Unquastionably from the character of its
leaders, but very largely superinduced by
speaker who, when any important measure
vas, was under discussion Notably high igsll
vacated the chair there was not
an exception and surrendering his
important place often to unskilled
hands, lodging the responsibility OF par
liamentaIy rulings. Twice only was Mr..
Merriam's voice heard on the floor. and both
of these times in the last week of the ses-
sion; once to advocate Mr.. Donnelly's ques-
tionable bill reducing the rate of interest. as
surfing the farmer that he knew nothing of
country needs, but that as a banker he did
know that no business In the city could stand
over 5 per cent, and again pleading as per-
sonal favor to the house to bring order out
of chaos and to consider the appropriation
bills.
Mr. Merriam, with abilities in other chan
nels of a brilliant and valuable character,
has, as the Dispatch clearly foretold. been
unequal to the situation as speaker. The
gubernatorial bee buZZed so loudly in his
bonnet that he thought it cruel and unjust
when, in unvarniShed English, we foretold
what has come to pass. Despite the fact that
has challenged the rebuke of for
mer supporters, and that our fears
have been more than realized. still
we are charitable enough TO ascribe it all to
an overmastering ambition to be the next
governor of the state. We reasSert that Hon.
W. r. Merriam is a valuable citiZen-an
energetic, broad gauge business man, whom
we will gladly support for honors, the vest
ments of which fit his peculiar mental frame.
The verdict of the public will be
that the house made mistake
in its selection of speaker. and the verdict of
his party soon will stop the dizzy hum of
/ the bee, and we feel confident that time will
disclose to Mr.. Merriam himself that we have
not done him injustice. We do not dwell
upon Mattson and several others. not even
upon Representative Lucas whom our
Twin City chose to send to the twenty
fifth session. In behalf of the re-
spectacle and dignified labor element
whom the Dispatch is proud to represent we
emphatically repudiate such as Lucas: but
both Lucas and Donnelly could have been
squelched long ago. They were, however,
encouraged and hence it is that many good
and faithful member will return sad-hearted
and shame faced to his constituents, re-
| gretful that his name has been associated
| with the Twenty fifth session.
| Now that il is all over let us thank merci-
| full Providence that all is not lost, and let US
| see to it that the Republican party is not
| again duped one year from next autumn
The lessons of experience are bitter. but if
we profit by them the wine of joy will flow
| from the cup of sorrow. AS for that mass of
| harmful and visionary legislation, we may
| trust all outraged supreme court to
| nullify very much of it, and the leaving
| undone of SO much that should have been
| done ii would be unfair to ascrihe solely to
| Speaker Merriam. An astute political search
| er will go behind the speaker and will at
once discover Window. Fletcher. Lancdoh
| ct al, as the primal source of all these woes
| and the Republican state convention in st.
| Paul last autumn as the time and place where
| was planted the seed of which this is partly
| the fruitage.
With regret rather than pride, but sus-
| tanned by the invincible logic of events, we
| modestly say 1.-The Dispatch again stands en-
| dorsed.''