The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-07-03
POOR REPORTER GETS 1T
What Politicians Do When Their Mouths
Run Away With Them

| Politicians ara sorry crowd when
| they are filed with political cowarCfice
| They are perhaps the most piria bic
people on earth when they have no back
bone. No one knows this better than
= reporter who, at any time, would
sooner depend on a prisoner IN the CITY
jail TO stand by an expression Of opin-
ion than the average of1iceseeker. When
they get TO talking they leave their
tongues run away with them and in
nine cases out OF ten the reporter mas
60 be merciful and cuu out things that
ne thinks they ought not 70 have said.
MS IS a universal spirit OF fairness
IN the profession and the exercise of it
usually meets with bad results. II
ANYBODY b4ames the politician for what
| ne says ne immediately finds some
| and or the or if or s=out" In the
interview that a. did nos say and then
he says the reporter misqUOted him
They usually suffer for il IN the next
world not in this. for injustice and
ingra tituGe are always sure 20 find
punishment
| Probably there Is no public man that
the reporters have been more fair with
than Ex-Governor Leweiling There
are volumes Of unwritten history con-
I corning his converse tons both at Tone
ka and Wichita The boys have been
/ lavihs in their generosity towards him
in not quoting everything he mas said
and many are the times they failed 10
give some OF his hot stuff because he
is a rather genial fellow. Day before
yesterday ne told a great many things
10 a reporter for the Eagle, some of a
public nature and some OF private ma
ture. according 10 the reporters views
although the ex-governor put no strings
70 anything that he said. He said
great many things about his own can
didacy that was OF a quasi confidential
tone and not a word was said about IL.
What was quoted was purely from his
voluntary conversation and now be-
cause some ragged whiskered ward Pop
jumps on him about IL he announces
that the whole thing is q lie and was
printed for political effect. His action
in denying and regulating facts is
very unfair and unjust and entirely I'M
worthy OF a man IN his position before
the public. Everything the reporter
said that he said was absolutely correct
in substance.
He said that ne wrote a letter 20
John Martin outlining mis- views as 70
what the Democrats should do OF Chi
cage. He told il 10 many others in
Wichita who can prove it.
He told his ideas of how II should
be so fixed that each OF the two par
ries should have a representative on the
ticket
He spoke about the objections OF the
Southern POpuiists, exactly as related.
to the endorsement Of the Democratic
ticket.
He defined the causes Of their objec-
ton precisely as il was printed in the
Eagle.
In short he said everything that he
was quoted as having said and more
too.
All public man usually has 70 DO T.
70 say: Il don't want to be quoted in
this" and his wishes viii be respected
It would be much more manly 10 do
this than 10 deny his statements and
create the impression in the public mind
that the reporter is a liar. II is very
easy 10 unders tand why very. very
cheap local ward political striker
would resort TO such methods. but Il
is not so easy TO understand why one
with prstensions to dignity IN public
life would do 50.