Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-03-26
ALLIANCE MANIFESTO.
The Farmer Members OF the Late Kansai
Legislature Explain Matters.

the history Of this state, and were at work
two days earlier than any prior legislature.
The senate elected two years ago last fall,
with two or three exceptions, was opposed
to our party and the platform upon which we
were elected The governor and executive de-
partments of the state, with the exception OF
the attorney general were also in opposition
to us. No Effort was spared by our oppo-
nents to divide and disorganiZe our party.
We were told that the farmers could not and
would not stick together The daily press,
not only in Topeka but all over the state,
with two honorable Exceptions, were op-
posed to rs.
The first matter OF Importance was the
election o state printer The peoples can
didatc 4 II. Snow, ol ottawa, was elected on
Joint bs!lOt receiving l0l votes. For years
Mr. Snow mas been advocating cur prin iples
and WAS and is In full sympathy with our
demands. The peoples party in conference,
after hearing the claims cf all candidates
presented. decided On W. !. =. fer, editor of
the Kansas Farmf r, Il man who largely con
iri;iUtc'i to the suCCcss of GU" party. an! he
WAS '!c cd 10 the high office of U"ited
state -gaH:nr. 80 succeed John J. Ing lis,
wthu'H "a i.r..l; ia cvr ranhs T5" result
Itself Aas worth all Ihc fort of oar party
la-t fall, rs i III rSc. a new cra liz tho poll
ties Of tEis s:atU and in lIcateS the grand
success OF the party in ;hc nation n 1882.
The scioo;ed = publican politicians Of the
nation were gathered in Topeka and our
footsteps were roggc by h.raI HcSsiaGs at
every turn. with Offer Of pe.f and political
honors. but wit.Out fleet. We point to this
with PRIDE as demonstrating hat the chosen
rcprcs, natives of the peoples party have
proven the fGlsshocd of the ring politician
that every man has his price.
We icuaG Uron our statute books "A lGrge
number OF lrws creating boarlS Of commits
sion"i ;, state agrn's. t., which seemed to
&.
pose OF providing places for favOritc- rather
than for any benefit TO the state; bat we
have fOuni it impossible to repeal these
laws, with the senate and executive depart
ment making bitter ii-ht a"ainst abolish
ing thvs" sinecureS Au attempt was made
on IN" part of the house in good faith and
without aHy at Cmpt TO cripple any state in
stitution. penal charitable or educational
to rcdace the expens $ to something like an
equality with the earnings OF the average
citiZ II of Kansas. This ;ttemps was met by
the senate tn an absolute refusal to con-
slider any proposition which reduced the
wages or salaries OF emp owes of state insti-
tutiOns which were und'r republican man
agem"nt.
We present hereafter Il comparison of ap-
propTiat ons made two years ago and the
appropriations made his season. The SEN
ate ins sted on higher appropriations except
in the proposition to appropriate SEQ 0J0 for
the relief o. the people in the western part
of the state, who were suffering from the Sc
we're drought of last year, and an appropria-
tion o. $4,000 to provide for the destitute
insane who have been Orycars past confined
In the county jails In this state. The peoples
party Cf the house originated and passed the
bill approprIating :6GOO Tor tine relief of
the western farmers of this state, which
was defeated by the senate. We have
not forgotten that in the drought in
f.1z zfarqr In
ern state legislatures appropriated large
sums of money for the re ief of the people,
but when the peoples party passed the bill
in the house for the purpose of relieving
western Kansas from a-similar infiiction the
senate discovered that all such legislation
was unconstitutional By amendment in
sisted upon by the senate, the different coun-
ties in the western part of the state were
made responsible for the distribution of seed
grain sent to them and the price thereof
must be returned to the state treasury, while
the recipients in the eastern part OF tine state
of the bounties extended to them in 1850 re-
fused, through the republican representa-
tives and senators, to assist one dollar in the
relief OF sufferers in western Kansas
The legislation of this session has not re-
suited in what we desired 20 accomplish, nor
in what the people would have had the right
to expect from us, had we been in power in
all the branches of the state government. BY
passed and will become laws upon our stat
ute books, among the most important of
which is one prohibiting the allen ownership
of lands in Kansas and providing for the
sale OF all lands owned by aliens, acquired
after the date of this act, in from three to
six years time, or upon the death of aliens
holding the land previous to the enactment
of this law.
The appropriations for the next two years,
while thousands of dollars lower than in the
years past have been swelled by necessary
Investigations and by the impeachment of
one of the district judges of the state.
The remainder of the address is de-
voted to an enumeration of the impor-
tant bills passed by the house and de-
feated in the senate. 1t explains the
failure to appropriate for the worlds
fair from the peoples party standpoint,
and continues:
Not an important measure reported by this
committee ever became a law, except one,
which was so badly mutilated that its au-
thors could not recognize It.
The manifesto concludes as follows:
As a comparison OF economy between the
two houses, we submit the fact that the SEN
ate with forty members had us emplCyes on
its payroll, while the house with a member
ship of l2i had only clghty-two, making a
difference of s12s per pay in the cost of run
ming the two houses.
In closing, we can safely say in refutation
of the charges made by our political enemies
and given such wide circulation, that We did
not consider or pass a single bill that could
in any way, directly or Indirectly, disturb the
relation of debtor and creditor, nor leopard
ize the collection of debts, nor to repudiate
any honest obligation, and with this brief
and careful summary of only few of the
important measures considered and passed
by the peoples house of representatives
during the thrtieth session of the Kan
sas legislature, with the action taken
thereon by the republican senate, we know
that we can safely say to every business
interest in the state of Kansas that we have
tried to carefully guard and protect the
same in the interests of the people of our
state and that they will not fail to see how
unfortunate It was, and in the future will be,
to have republican senate whose only bus
iness object was to obstruct honest legisla-
tion in the interest of the people of this
state and to checkmate the action of the
peoples chosen representatives.
We commend this review to the honest
consideration of our people and a candid
world.
The address is signed by P. P. Elder
and the chairmen of forty-two COM
mittees.
Reports from Montana points say that
there was a distinct earthquake shock
at Butte, Anaconda and Billings, The
shock was in places sufficient to knock
dishes from cupboards.