Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1896-08-31
The Wise Men OF Kansas.
CRockford Rcgister.)

tRockford RcgiSter)
About the best things on the money
"a, stion we have seen lately comes In
Tho form Of a fable or rather a sort OF
/ parable. 1t is entitled The Wise Men
/ If Kansas" ana was written and copy
shted by A. f. Stillwen. 1t is dated
in the year 900 and reads as follows:
1t was near the close of the nine
tCenth @entury-eVeryWhcre there was
great depression. Railroads could not
pay dividends. values were shrunken
money was idle. labor unemployed
The well-to-do could not make profits
the poor could not pay their debts. and
everybody was gloomy and sad. Each
man as he met his neighbor would
solemnly say. in the language of the
Hon. James Fadden, What tell" and
IacodilY pass on.
Then there arose the wise men OF
Kansas They We're mighty in their
CAY: with horeyed words they beguiled
the people. They painted in colors of
light the oppression of labor and the
sulrrrinsS Of poverty. They pictured
in hurs that paled the mornings rosy
glow the delights of luxury and the
blessings Of wealth.
Frenzicd by the intoxicating dream
they exclaimed, Wherefore are we not
all rich? Go to now. Let us abolish
poverty. Let us legislate ourselves
into afliuence" And the people heard
and We're smitten with the delicious
madness.
Then the governor assembled the
wise men in special session and thus
addressed them:
Most noble, brave and mighty yeo-
men, our people groan. The burden is
heavy upon them. Early and late they
toll and eat the bread of disappoint-
ment and bitterness. Make We laws
for their dclverance.
We are the greatest state in the
Union. We are big enough and rich
enough to have a policy of our own re-
gardless Of what other states mayo do or
may not do. Let us be patriotic. A
Kansas policy for Kansas Is the need OF
the hour. Wheat is hard to raise. and
the yield is light and uncertain: but we
are great on corn The notion that the
price must be governed by the law of
supply and demand is superstition by
means of which the rich plumber and
cypress honest toll. Make We, there
fore, a law i'll accordance with which
sovereign ana august statute corn shall
be put on par with wheat They
shall be interchangeable bushel for
bushel. and the price of corn shall be
the same as the price of wheat. Do
this. and the people of Kansas shall!
rise up ana call YOU blessed. and all
the world. except the money lenders.
SNAIL hail you as the emancipatorS of
mankind"
The wise men passed the laws as the
governor had advised and all the people
OF the state rejoiccd. for their cribs
were full of corn. They could hardly
contain themselves till the governor
had signed the bill which raised the
price of Kansas corn from Il cents
to As cents a bushcl. All the people
now felt rich. They. bought many
luNuries and the most of them went
in debt. They wondered that they had
never before found out that wealth was
simply a matter of legislation, and
they felt great pity and contempt for
the ignorant and SuperStitious people
Of the other states. Then the farmers
from the other states began hauling
their corn to Kansas. Long lines of
wagons came winding along every road.
Beats fioated it down the rivers and
railroads rushed it in from every sec
ton Of the county. 1t seemed as if
the country was all corn and it was all
headed for Kansas. The people of
Kansas took their medicine, that is.
they took the corn and gave up their
wheat
The farmers from the other states
thought the Kansas people We're queer.
but they kept bringing them their corn.