The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1896-10-03

populhtioH bl tnc ech lhohodhoo cfu's
year.
Not only has she lost population, but
she has lost wealth. Every moneyed
man in the state who could get out
without great loss has gone. Every
month in every community sees some
one who has little money pick up and
leave the state. This has been going on
for eight years. Money is being drained
out all the time. In towns where ten
years ago there were three or four or
half a dozen money lending concerns
stimulating industry by furnishing capi-
tai there is now none or one or two that
are looking after the interest and princi-
pal already outstanding
No one brings any money into Kansas
any more. What community knows
over one or two men who have moved in
with more than $1,000 in the last three
years? And what community cannot
count hall a score OF men in that time
who have left, taking all the money they
could scrape together
Yet the nation has grown rich. Other
states have increased in population and
wealth-other neighboring states. Mis-
souri, has gained nearly two million,
while Kansas has been losing hall n
million Nebraska has gained in wealth
and population, while Kansas has gone
down hill. Colorado has gained in every
way. while Kansas has lost in every way
since 1883.
What is the matter with Kansas?
There is no substantial city in the
state. Every big town save one has lost
in population. Yet Kansas City, Oma-
ha, Lincoln, st. Louis, Denver, Colorado
Springs, Sedalia, Des Moines, the cities
OF the Dakotas, ST. Paul and Mime
apolis--all cities and towns in the west
have steadily grown.
Take up the government blue hook and
you will see that Kansas is virtually oil
the map. Two or three little scabby
consular places in yellow fever stricken
communities that do not aggregate
$4,000 a year is all the recognition
that Kansas has. Nebraska draws
about $1O0,O0O little old North Da
kota draws 1000; Oklahoma doubles
Kansas; Missouri leaves her thousand
miles behind Colorado is almost seven
times greater than Kansas-the whole
west is ahead Of Kansas.
Take it by any standard you please,
Kansas is not in it.
Go east, and you hear them laugh Mt
Kansas, go west and they sneer at her,
60 south and they "cuss" her, 60 north
and they have forgotten her. Go into
any crowd OF intelligent people gathered
anywhere on the globe and you will find
the Kansas man on the defensive. The
newspaper columns and magazine pages,
once devoted 10 praise OF the state, to
boastlul iacts and startling figures con-
corning her resources, now are filed with
cartoons, gibes and Pefierian speeches.
Kansas just naturally isn't in the civ
ilizcd world. She has traded places with
Arkansas and Timbuctoo.
What's the matter with Kansas
We all know; yet here we are ut 1t
again. We have an old moss-back jack
sonian, who snorts and howls because
there is a bath-tub in the statehouse; we
are running that old jay for governor.
We have another shabby, wild-eyed, rat
tle-braned fanatic who has said openly
in n dozen speeches that "the rights OF
the user are paramount to the rights oil
the owner" we are running him
for chief Justice, SO that capital will
come tumbhng over itself TO get into the
state. We have ruked the ash heap OF
human failure in the state, and have
found an old hoopskirt OF a man who
has failed az n business man, who has
failed us an editor, who has Jailed as u
preacher, and we are going to run him
for ongrcssman-at-large. lie will help
the looks OF the Kansas delegation in
Washington. Then we have discovered
kid without law practice, and have
decided To vote for him Ms attorney
general. Then for fear some hint that
the state had become respectable might
pcrcolatc through the civilized nation,
we have decided TO send three or four
harpies out lecturing, telling the people
that Kansas is raising hell and letting
corn go TO weeds.
Oh, this is state to he proud of! We
are n people who can hold up our heads.
What we need here is less money, less
capital, fewer white shirts and brains,
fewer men with business judgment, and
more OF these fellows who boast that
they are "iust ordinary old clod-hop-
pcrs, but that they know more in a
minute about finance than John Sher-
man" We need more men who are
"posted," who can below about the
crime OF '73, who hate prosperity, and
who think that because n man believes
i'm NATIONAL honor that he is "A tool OF