The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1897-03-09

Under the caption, South Dakota's
DISGRACE" the Sioux City Journal Of the
S.h inst. has an editorial on the South
Dakota legislature, speaking In a sneer
ing and derogatory tone OF the work
and character Of the Legislature. Among
other sneers it filings the following:
Severe criticism has been placed on
the legislatures in Kansas, Colorado,
Idaho, Nevada and other states whose
populIsm has become strong, but no
legislature has ever deserved 50 well the
condemnation OF the people as the one
which has just met in Pierre"
Now the Journal does not point out
wherein these states mentioned have
suffered from popullst rule. Barring
the general hard times brought upon
them 10y republican financial measures,
they are IA prosperous u day as any
states in the union. The same can b"
SAID of South Dakota. We have no dis
position to identify ourselves with II
populist Legislature or champion It's acts,
but We do believe in the inailenAble
lirht of every man to be treated fairl!
and not lied about to crafty mere par
tlsan rancor. Now what are the Journ-
ais charges against the South Dakota
legislature? 1t probably knows no more
about the character Of the legislation
passed than we do, and is not willing to
await the results to see whether 1t ls
good. bad or Indifferent. It's first charge
is that the popuiists tried to elect a pop
ulis, for senator. and that the repubii
cars"by clever work helped them elect
the Oest one Of the candidates. There
surely could not have been anything
very bad about that work when the re-
publicans endorsed It. Then the Jour.
unl charges Revolutionary means TO cap
lure all the state offices Well, II 1t
was revolutionary, there has beer no.
body allied, and If there bad 1t probably
would not have mattered much. That
is tie way people obtain and preserve
their liberties. There is far less hanger
to the rights, liberties and interests OF
the people in overturnlng II few state
boards, even though they are republican,,
which have throttled our public lnstItu-
tons and disgruced our state by their
petty wrangles the past four years, than
there is in Mark Hanna sending n tele-
gram TO the governor OF a state and or
derlng him Ia call n session OF the legis-
lature ostensibly to elect a republican
United States senator whom he could
boss. Even Moses fled in fear when he
struck down the Egg ptlan who cues
toned his lordship, but there are no
terrors for the republican boss OF the
present day except in the growing lndlg-
nation of the people as manifested IN
these dolngs Of the popnl.st party. If
the ~populist party expects to do any
thlng>in improving the management OF
our public institutions and state offices,
it was certainly justified in first cleaning
out the republican Augean stables and
taking possession itself. How else
could it be held responsible? And lnso-
far as it has failed TO get control OF
of these offices, the repnbli ans will be
more to blame than the populists. if
they are not properly conducted. The
JoIrnal to the contrary n~otwi'hstand-
icr. we y-uture the as ertion on o. r
limited kmuwl4 !ge OF what has leen
done. that. the legislature just closed. so
far as tie popnlis,s have been abe to
control it, has lone better work and
given more wholesome legislation than
any legislature that has ever sat III
So lth Dakota except the first one