Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1890-03-14
A Day With the Statesmen at the
Capital and Glimpses at the
~ Show.
Signs, Echoes and RumOrs a. They
Are Caught in Hall and
...- Lobby.
The Work of the Law Makers as
Seen Under the Changing
- Lights.
Yesterdays Novelty.
[From Fridays Daily.1

Every Legislative day has its novelty.
Some days it is a plain ordinary develop
ment or invention with hardly sufficient
s~ensationalism to keep the solons from
slumber; again it is exciting and inspirit-
ing, and occasionally it reaches that eli
max of interest which thrills and enthuses,
but rarely does it have that rich and racy
novelty which characterized the event in
the house yesterday.
For several weeks the righteous attorney
general has been treating with scorn the
limitations that he was one Of the state
officials who i~nstigated the accusations of
bribery and bride taking against the legis-
lature. That he was in daily consultation
with detectives was Of course merely acct
dental (?) as he was attending strictly to
his business as encouragement in a digni-
fed manner; and the insinuation that the
object of his studied failure to give a direct
and candid opinion to the senate as to the
power of a legislature, was to say himself
and friends from examination, wa too pre-.
posterous for consideration.
This was his demeanor up to the time
when his friend, Representative Stevens,
DESTROYS of giving him full credit for his
literary efforts, presented to the house a
copy Of a letter sent by him (Goodwin) to
his friend and spokesman, Editor johnson
of the Lisbon Star. Since the reading OF
not heen so numerous in public places that
any definite knowledge Of his demeanOr
cah be given.
The letter was written on February I'd
lit appears in another cOlumn) and in this
remarkable document Acknowledgement
Goodwin says, among other things, that the
legislature is being bought by the Louis
lana lottery company; that senators are
being paid $4,000 in stock which is guar
anteed to pay a dividend of 100 per cent.
every six months: that members of the
legislature are being paid from 5000 to $500
down, with the promise of doubling when
the bill becomes a law, and that Stevens is
holding out for a cool $4,000.
He further says that he has not much
faith in Selby; quotes John Rea; requests
johnson to write up an article filling in
the sensational details and to publish the
same when he receives a telegram contain
ing the words
"sET UP STOVES"
And this from the encouragement of
the state!
The law officer of the state inspiring sen
satiOnal accusations against the legisla-
ture.
No wonder he refused to give an opinion
a. to proper procedure to compel witnesses
to testify before the investigating COM
mittee.
Rash Goodwin! Will he now go before
the investigating committee and tell just a
little truth?
Will he tell how much more "iEforma-
ton" himself and other state officers gave
to- the dime-novel correspondents of the
Pioneer Press?
Then, for the good Of the people of North
Dakota and in the interest Of justice, will
he prove some of the accusations?
These are questions agitating the public
mind, and the elevated statesman Of reform
should be given a full opportunity to ex-
pose the "damnable scheme to corrupt the
state" by testifying before the Investigate
ing committee.
II CLOSING DISPLAY.
The prospect for a brilliant and unprece-
denied display of red-fre during the clos
ing days Of the session is growing brighter
daily. 1t may be that there has been a
more picturesque, rocket-shooting legisla-
tive assembly than the one which starts
North Dakota on her statehood parade,
but if so, historians have been wOefully
negligent in the performance of their du-
ties. For the number of scalps that have
been taken, the number that are now
within reach of the knife and the array of
Donnybrook political faces that emerge
from the arena with courtplaster and poul-
tees, the present session has broken the
record. :"
The wind is being taken out of Denny
Eanniin's popular demand for political
funerals and it now looks as though his
cemetery will be overcrowded.
Let the ball 90 on.