Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1892-11-12

Tue DTluRc 1TlumpuhtiS, anu Juo DLuul-
ertine prison, holding no more apos-
tolic prisoners, and the silent Forum,
and Rasilica of Constantine, and the
arch of Titus. and the Pantheon come
in with great chorus, crying: Dead,
dcady' After Horace, after Virgil,
after Tacitus, after Cicero, dead. After
Horatius on the bridge, and Cincin-
natus, the farmer oligarch. after Pom
pcy, after Scipio, after Cassius, after
Constantine, after Cesar, dead The
war eagle of Rome few so high it was
blinded by the sun and came whirling
down through the heavens, and the
owl Of desolation and darkness built its
nest in the forsalsen eyrie. Mexican
empire, dead. French empire, dead.
You see, my friends, it is no unusual
thing for government to perish, and
in the same neurology OF dead nations,
and in the same graveyard of expired
governments will go the United States
of America unless there be some potent
voice to call halt, and unless God in
his mercy interferes and through pur-
fled ballot box and widespread pub
lie Christian sentiment the catastrophe
be averted. This nation is about to go
to the ballot box to exercise the right
of suffrage, and propose to SGT before
You the evils that threaten TO destroy
the American government, and to an
initiate American institutions, and II
God will help me will show You be-
fore get through the mode in which
each and every one may do something
to arrest that appalling calamity.
And shall plow up the whole field.
The first evil that threatens the ami
hilation of our American institutions is
the fact that political bribery, which was
once considered crime. has by many
come to be considered tolerable vir-
tue. There is Legitimate use Of money
in elections, in the printing of political
tracts, and in the hiring of public halls,
and in the obtaining of campaign ora
tory; but is there any homunculus who
supposes that this vast amount of
money now being raised by the polit-
ical parties is going in legitimate di-
rection? The vast majority of it will
go to buy votes
There used to be bribery, but it held
its head in shame 1t was under the
utmost secrecy that many years ago
railroad company bought up the Wis
consin legislature and many other pub
lie officials in that state. The governor
OF the state at that time received $780,
900 for his signature His private Sec
rotary received $1,000. Thirteen mem
bers of the senate received S175,0O0
among them in bonds Sixty members
of the other house received from $1,000
to $4,000 each. The lieutenantgov-
ernor received $1,000. The clerks OF
the house received from $4,000 to $40, 900
each. The bank comptroller received
Sl0,00l. Two hundred and fifty thous-
and dollars were divided among the
lobbyists. You see, the railroad COM
pany was very generous But all that
was hidden, and only through the Sc
verest scrutiny on the part of legisla-
tive committee was this iniquity dis
played. Now, political bribery defes
you. dares you and is arrogant
Unless this diaboilsm ceases in this
country, Bartholdi's statue on Bedloe's
island, with uplifted torch to light
other nations into the harbOr, had bet
ter be changed and the torch dropped
as a symbol Of universal incendiarism.
Unless this purchase and sale OF suf-
frage shall cease, the American govern
ment will expire, and you might as we'll
be getting ready the monument for an
other dead nation, and let my text in-
scribe upon it these words: "Alas!
alas! for Babylon, that great city. that
mighty city, for in one hour Is thy judg-
ment come" My friends, if you have
not noticed that political bribery Is one
of the ghastly crimes OF this day, you
have not kept your eyes open.
Another evil threatening the destrue-
ton of American institutions is the
solidifying of the sections against each
other. A solid north. solid south. II
this goes on we shall, after while,
have solid east against solid west,
we shall have solid middle states
against solid northern states, we shall
have a solid New York against a solid
PENNSYLVANIA, and solid Ohio against
a solid kentucky. 1t is twenty-seven
wears since the war closed, and yet at
every presidential election the old an
taconism is aroused. When Garfield
died, and all the states gathered around
his casket in sympathy and in tears,
and as hearty kilograms OF coincidence
came from New Orleans and from
Charleston as from Boston and Chicago.
/ said to myself; II think sectionalism
is dead" But. alas! no. The difficulty
will never be ended until each state OF
the nation is split up into two or three
great political parties. This country
cannot exist unless it exists as one
body, the national capital the heart,
sending out through all the arteries OF
communication warmth and life to the
very extremities. This nation cannot