Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-09-01
WHY KANSAS SUFFERS
A Newspaper Tells What is Wrong With the
State.
Why the Population Has Not Increas-
ed-Her Politics and Candi.
dates Reviewed.


Today the Kansas department Of agri-
culture sent Gut a statement which indi-
Gates that Kansas has gained less than
1000 people In the last year. There arc
about 125,OO0 families in the state and
there were about 10000 babies born in
Kansas. and yet so many people have left
The state that the natural increase is cut
down to less than 1000 Ect. This has been
going on for eight years.
III there had been a high brick wall
around the state eight years ago and not
q soul had been admitted or permitted to
leave, Kansas would be half million souls
better off than she is today. And yet the
| hation has increased in population. In five
years 1o.OO.OoO people have been added to
the national population. yet instead of
gaining a share of th.s-say 500,OOp-kansas
has apparently been a plague spot, and in
the very garden Of the world has lost pop
! ulation by the ten thousands every year.
Not only has she lost population, hut sh..
| has lost wealth. Every moneyed man 81
| the state who could get out without great
loss has gone. Every month in every COM
| nIunity sees some one who has a little
| money pick up and leave the state. This
| has been going on for eight years. Money
| .s being dr ained out all the time. In towns
| where ten years ago there were three or
| four or half a dozen money lending con-
| cerns stimulating Industry by furnishing
| apital there is now mole or one or two
| that are looking after the interest and
| principal already outstanding.
No ore brings any money into Kansas
| any more. What community knows over
one or two men who have moved in with
| more than 5000 In the last three years?
And what community cannot court half
| score of men in that time who have left.
| taking all the money they could scrape to-
gether?
Yet the nation has grown rich. Other
states have increased in population and
| wealth-other ne, gkboring states Missouri
has gained nearly two million while Kansas
has been losing half 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 1SSS.
What is he matter with Kansas?
There Is no substantial city in the state.
Every big town save one has lost In popu-
| lation. Yet Kansas City, Omaha, Lincoln.
81. Louis. Denver Colorado Springs, Sc
Gafia, Des Moines. the cities of the Da-
kotas. ST. Paul and Minneapolis-all cities
| and towns in the west have steadily grown:
fake up the government blue book and
you will see that Kansas is virtually OFF
| the map. Two or three little scabby con-
sular places In yellow fever stricken COM
| munities that do not aggregate $1,000 a
year is all the recognition Kansas has.
Nebraska draws about slo0G1; little old
! North Dakota draws $Josbo; Oklahoma
doubles Kansas: Missouri leaves her a
| 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, Kan
sas is not in 1t.
Go east, and you hear them laugh at Kan
sas. go west and they sneer at her, go
| south ard they 'cusS" her, go north and
! they have forgotten her, Go into any
crowd Of intelligent people gathered any
where on the globe and you will find the
no
paper columns and magazine pages, once
devoted to praise of the state. to boastful
| facts and startling figures concerning her
resources. now are filled with cartoons
gibes and Pefferian speeches. Kansas just
naturally isn't in the civilized world. She
has traded places with Arkansaw and Tim
| buctoo.
| What's the matter with Kansas?
We all know; yet here We are at it again
| We have old moss-back Jacksonian.
| who shorts and bowls because there is a
| bath tub i'm the state house: We are run
| ming that old jay for governor We have
another shabby, wild-eyed rattle-brained
fanatic who has said openly in a dozen
| speeches that 1.-The rights of the user are
para mount to the rights of the owner" We
are running him for chief justice so that
capital VIII come tumbling over itself to
get into the state. We have raked the ash
heap of human failure in the state and have
found an old hoopskirt Of man who has
failed as business man, who has failed
as an editor, who has failed as a preacher
and We are going to run him for Congress-
man-at -larse. He will help the looks of the
Kansas delegation in Washington. Then
We have discovered kid without a law
practice. and have decided to vote for him
as attorney general Then for fear some
| hint that the state had become respects BILE
| might percolate through the civilized por-
| lions of the nation, We have decided to
| send three o. four harpies out lecturing
| telling the people that Kansas is raising
| hell and letting corn go to weeds.
| 4 tn he. pf u Va
| are people who can hold up our heads.
| What we reed 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 Just ordinary old clodhoppers. but
| that they Know more in a minute about
finance than John Sherman" We neel
! more men who are posted who can bel
low about the crime Of ID who hate pos
terify, and who think that because a man
believes In national honor that he is a tool
" wall street. We have had a few of
| them some 10000, but We want more We
| reed several thousand gibbarfng idiots to
scream about the Great Red Dragon of
LOMBARD street. We don't need population
| We dolt need wealth. we don't need we'll
! dressed men on the streets, we don't need
standlng In the nation. We don't need citias
on these fertile prairies; you bet we dom
w nat we are after is the money power.
| Because We have become poorer and ornier
| and meaner than a spawned. disfemnerad
niue we, the people of Kansas, propose TO
KICK: we don't care to build up. we wish
There are two ideas of government -
SAID our noble Bryan at Chicago. There
are those who -believe that if Won iust Ieoiso
t Ete TO make the well-to-do prosperous
| ILL ILL ProSperity Will leak through on those
usfow- The democratic idea has been tb.t
III you 1esislate to make the masses pros
porous their prosperity will find lis W.
| u.s. ii" rest upon
Ihats the stuff. Give the prosner,uS
man the dickens. Legislate the tbrjft -.
l,l.9 ease; whack the stufIing OUT of tbe
uneul.ofs. ana tell the debtor who borrowed
o ohoaey nve years ago. when the MONEY in
thot an was more general than ii is now
,Hat the contraction of the currorc,, 80,
MIN right to repudiate eNcs
,bs n loop IL up for the ragged trousers: put
me lazy greasy fizzle who cen n., p pie
ae 20, lon on an altar and bow down ard wn nrs
81 up MN Let the state IDEAL be nigh What
we need is not the respect of our fa,, aa.
r,Cthing. "oiethihg Tor
On, yes. Kansas is n great state u..o
are people fleeing from it by the score e,-
cry Day capital going out of the STATE nv,
l tne hundreds della ,,l - ~