The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1891-03-13
KANSAS POLITICS,
Noble Prentis' Views. He Thinks the
Farmers have had Their day, and
Some other Trade should hvae

Some other Trade should hvae
Chance.
The experience of Kansas proves the
truth of the maxim, uttered by one o.
the wisest men of his age, ''The world
is governed too much" The trainers o.
the constitution of Kansas thought il
needful that the legislature should meet
every year, but after p few years of tria
the people amended the constitution SC
as to provide for biennial sessions and
without increasing the length of the
sessions, and Kansas has been quite as
well governed as before. Kansas would
not suffer for laws if the Legislature
met quadrennially.
Every legislature has a character oil
its own, dependent on surroundings and
leadership. Legislatures upon which
have devolved the election of United
States senator's have usually had some
marked characteristics. They have
usually contained more professional
politicians, more political soldiers OF
fortune, more "hired men," and yet
have taken rank in what in Kansas is
vaguely called ability" Then there
have been legislatures distinguished by
others by Indifference and idleneSs.
Others, still, by the general good char
scter of the membership, and, if not by
positive work for good, at least by alb
stention from evil.
The legislature whose record is soon
to be made up and made part of the
history of the state, has differed in sew
eral important respects from any other
that has ever assembled in Kansas.
1t is the first in which the political
complexion of the house differed from
that OF the senate. Governor Click as
a democrat was at variance with both
branches of the legislature, but Cover
nor Humphrey is the first chief magis-
trate of the state to agree with one body
and disagree with the other. 1t may
be said that no particular inconvenience
has resulted in either Governor Clicks
or Governor Humphreys case from
these differences. 1t really would not
appear to make much difference about
the politics Of the governors of Kansas.
The experience of the present legis-
lature has shown the advantage of hay-
ing a "hold overo body in the senate.
1t sounds very wen to talk about a leg
islative body as ''fresh from the peO-
ple," but it occasionally happens that
the people are ''too fresh" In that
case it is well to have an authority at
hand representing the public sentiment
las it was" "Philip drunk" in the
house may we'll be counterbalanced by
"Philip sober" in the senate. What
ever railing may be INDUCED in at pres
ent, six months from now large ma
jority OF the people of Kansas will be
very glad that in the legislature of 1891
there was conservative senate as op-
posed to a radical and reforming"
house.
The legislature of 1891 will be MEM
orable in Kansas annals as witnessing
the experiment Of an attempt at legisla-
ton by a secret society and a trades
union. Know Nothingism which had
its great run within the recollection of
middle-age6 Americans, was an effort
at controlling governments through a
secret society. Know Nothingism
swept the deck of the ''old parties" in
Massachusetts, and elected state ad-
ministration and a legislature that no.
body who was alive then has forgotten,
but the Know Nothings admitted into
their ranks men of all trades, callings
and professions. The Kansas legisla-
ture, or one branch of it. has tried the
experience of government by the follow
ers of one particular calling, and so has
made itself an object of interest.
If the state of Kansas is to be gov
erned by trade, then it is of the ut
most Importance to decide what partic-
ular trade is to be installed as the reign
No mol ha oh
between printers and blacksiniths, car
penters and bricklayers, timers and
matters. In Kansas we have tested the
capacity Of farmers alone and the results
of the experiment are matters of pub
lie discussion.
1t is the conviction of the writer, as
one citizen of Kansas. and entitled like
each and every other citizen to his opin-
ion and its expression, that so far as
what may be called agricultural govern
ment goes, it has not been triumphantly
successful in the Kansas house of repre-
sentatives.
In the firsl place, the body supposed
to be composed of farmers and repre-
senting farmers without regard to the
rest of the community resigned itself at
once to the control of men not farmers,
but politicians of an old and particularly
hardened type. No Kansas house was
ever more completely worked" than
the one which will soon be distributed
over the prairies of Kansas. In the face
of the natural superiority claimed for
farmers, the handful of lawyers in the
body, though belonging to the minority,
assumed a prominence and leadership
altogether out of proportion to their
numbers. Had there been ten times as
many lawyers present their rule would
not have been more apparent.
The farmer as legislator
has revealed his weakness in two
ways; first, he has not known
what he wanted. and second, he has
shown his weakness by suffering him
self to be openly and necessarily
one day when bill was lost-by help
lessly calling out for caucus. What
was wanted and expected was certain
originality and independence; what has
been seen is bewildered crowd going
into caucus every night for instruction
and direction, with legislation, as fa-I as
the house could carry it, absolutely die
tated by two men.
As to the manner OF the new heaven
sent statesman, nothing could have
been worse. The speeches have been
innumerable, and whatever the sup
posed subject, of the same character. A
set of phrases about the farmer, his
honesty, his simple tastes, his determi-
nation to reform and economic, has
been repeated and rerepeated and said
and sung and chanted and reciued and
intOned till they grew as wearisome as
the references to the ''harp of a thou
sand strings" and the sperits of just
men made perfeck" in whangdoOdle
sermon.
When the verdict is made up from a
ally done it will be found that all these
professions were as the fieeting wind,