The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1892-11-18
A LETTER FROM E. T. CHAMPLIN
VERNON, Nov. Is, 1892.


supplement of the FREE PRESS con
tanning an article under the title 0
Shameful Record'in which the acts o
the last legislature are held up to tn,
:. people of the state in maliciousl.
false light and the speaker is traducet
and lied about in an atrocious man
ner.
The supplement was issued by the
Republican State Committee on the
eve of election and circulated by the
local papers so as reach every voter o.
the Republican party in the state. Az
the FREE PRESS has seen fit to assist
in spreading this diatribe over Blue
Earth county, | hope you will have
fairness to make room for the follow.
ing reply.
shall prove what | have to say by
the records of the last legislature,
which no man can dispute. Now, on
page 249 of the Legislative Manual for
1891, you will find the names, occupa-
ton, ETC., of the members of the last
house of representatives and on page
10 of the Journal of the House you
will find their political status in the
vote for speaker, showing Democrats
Al, Republicans Al, and Alliance 80.
The article in question bears the
earmarks of a member of the last leg
islature, one who is familiar with it's
proceedings, but whose party zeal does
not stand upon the truth, for when
ever he makes a statement it is so dis
tOrted that scarcely semblance re-
mains. After lauding the Republican
party for it's noble work in the past,
he reaches the objects of his hate, to-
wit: the Democrats and Alliance men
of the last house of representatives,
upon whom he vents his spite, the
speaker coming in for large share of
his spleen, charging that he betrayed
his trust" and THAT the whole reform
program failed to go, Through the
treachery of the speaker and the Alli-
ance members themselves.
The writer charges that the speaker
packed the committee on railroads in
the interest of the railroad corpora
tions, and that ''only eight out of the
seventeen were farmers" Now for
the facts. As before stated, on page
249 of the manual will be found the
occupation of the members, and on
page 81 of the house journal will be
found the names of the committee on
railroads. Ten of the fifteen are farm
ers, and on page 217 two additional
names were added by order of the
house, one of whom, Mr.. White, was a
farmer, making eleven of the
seventeen farmers, instead of
eight as stated in the Republican sup
plement.
How is that for packing the railroad
committee? No wonder the author
of that libel did lot sign his name to
it.
He says that the Courier bill'' was
held by the railroad committee two
months, until the corporations could
get in the their deadly work on the
Cheap members of the house: and
when this greatrelief measure for the
farmers came up in that bOdyfor final
passage it was lost by a vote of 40
yeas to So nays. The fusion speaker,
he says, betrayed his trust by inter
posing false parliamentary rulings to
prevent a reconsideration. Now for
the facts. He does not tell you the
Republican candidate for speaker was
a member of that committee and not
a farmer, or that Mr.. Currier was a
member of the same committee, and
could have called the bill from the
committee at any time, and that when
it was reported Mr.. Currier asked to
have another bill blouse File No. GOD
substituted for it. Neither does he
refer in his dishonest charges to the
page in the Journal of the House, $50,
where the vote on the bill is recorded
and where the deadly work was got
ten in. Among the names recorded
as voting for the bill we find every AL
lance man, including the speaker
not an exception, but one absentee.
So the deadly work was put in on the
Alliance members very effectually.
But, Mr.. Editor, you will find that %
of the Al Republicans voted against
the bill. Now draw your own con-
illusions as to the alleged ideally
work.
The charge that the speaker inter
posed false parliamentary rulings de-
serves some notice. OF all the hun
dreds of rulings made by the speaker
during the session, but one appeal
was taken from his decisions, land that
was upon ruling upon vote taken
on the reconsideration of the Courier
BILL" There was no rule of the house
covering the question, and the speak
er decided upon his judgment as to
the merits of the case, without regard
to the question in controversy. On
page 1913 of the journal will be found