The Wichita daily eagle., 1896-02-16


Representative Citizen From Each of
Forty Southern Kansas Counties-Mc-
KinIey Oratory and Enthusiasm at
Every Stopping Place En- Koute-He
Hits the Railroads a Crack on Rates.
Syl Dixon of Argonia has novel
scheme to boom Mckinley for presi-
dent.
When Syl gets enthusiastic over
man he grows that way all over, and II
he hasn't the Mckinley fever now no.
body has.
As is well known Syl is the grain king
Of southern and western Kansas. Grain
is his pet and hobby. 1t is TO him
what the newspaper is TO the enthusias-
tic editor The editor can see more
influence 10 WELD through the news
paper than in anything else in crea ton,
the preacher likewise sees more inf1u-
ence in the pulpit and Syl Dixon sees
more influence in a load Of corn than
either Of thin.
Syl has his plan all ready and ii is
this: He viii buy forty car loads Of
corn and put them on one train Of two
sections, each car to be decorated with
the national cOIors, the state cOlors
and such other emblems and mottos
as VIII arouse enthusiasm for Mckinley
he viii start this train from Wichita
about four days before the convention
and viii run it through the heart OF
Kansas and Missouri, making stops at
important places. He will have a palace
car on the last section and in this car
he VIII have brass band and Some-
thing for his friends-something that
wiz not be a product of Kansas strictly
speaking.
Now. then, SyI will have those forty
cars 70 represent forty counties OF
southwestern Kansas and will have for
his guest a Mckinley man from each
county. Each man must be an orator
for Syl proposes to have a red hot Nc
Kinley speech made at every station
the train stops at. He will also have a
few good singers in the crowd who can
sing of the glories of Kansas, the Re-
publican party and Major Mckinley.
To be brief Syl is going to make a first
class disply ana blowout in the interest
Of the champion Of protection. He viii
sell the corn at ST Louis when McKin-
ley is nominated and expects that the
confidence inspired by the action of the
convention VIII bear the market suf-
ficie1tly 10 pay him for the extra eX-
penses OF his shipment.
Mr.. Dixon was in the city last night
and in conversation with reporter for
the Eagle he talked very plain about
The robbing grain rates of the rail-
roads. He, of course, being a heavy
shipper, understands and feels the op-
pressive rates Of the railroads. He
thinks that II something IS not done to
curb their power over the producers OF
Kansas that the people of this state,
Nebraska, oklahoma and Texas will
have 10 build road of their own.
Just think of it minute" said Mr..
Dixon. ''The government has spent
over six million dollars in money to
provide a deep water harbor on the
Gulf Tor the benefit of the producers OF
the west in order 10 get them closer to
tideWater and hence closer to the COM
petitiye markets of the world Now
that they have the tidewater harbOr
deep enough to handle large cargoes the
people of the west are as far away as
ever from the worlds markets by rea-
s0n Of the fact that the railroads put
IN rates that discriminate against the
Cuff ports and the western producers.
We must rise up in our might as states
and communities and demand Of the
an N'ciAr ''fltSttlt-l 4 tltH lDI our IlS nus
10 embrace opportunities the govern
ment has provided for US at an enor-
nous cost to the people.
1T is all absurd. in fact worse than
absurd, to make The people Of Kansas
pay tribute 10 the elevators of Kansas
City. Wichita should be the gateway
10 the Gulf for the grain of Kansas,
and not Kansas City. The big eleva-
tors should be built here on our own
soil, in our own commonwealth and in
the center Of production. The people
want Wichita to b their market in
preference 10 a Missouri town that con-
tributes nothing to sustain the state.
its government and its institution. say
THAI IS what the people want because
go among them and know what they
are thinking and talking about, and, In
time they must have their way, regard
less of the power and influence Of the
railroads and Kansas City"