The Advocate and news., 1898-02-02

act of your Legislature by which you have
the power given to you to further pluck
your stockholders bid the "statesInen''
ture themselves, create and carry into
completion this act, or did the banks
themselves see one more way In which they
could get at the pockets already depleted
but perhaps not entirely empty2 What
part did the ---- Bank take In this feat
Of Western engineering?
cannot attend your meeting, and would
not II could. have no desire to see
poor farce poorly played, and as for
sending proxy, would see you and all
the other members OF the management OF
the bank In the lowest depths OF hell bet
fore l would put my name to any paper
that would aid you In your nefaTious
schemes, and / would certainly prevent
any member of my family from signing
such paper.
was through your State recently, and
was disappointed In seeing II looking so
well. had hoped to sc nothing but des-
Olation However, II Is early yet and
there Is still time for the hot winds to blast
and destroy. wish for your whole State
and people nothing but distress, but fall
ure, utter bankruptcy. When that blessed
time and condition comes to you / shall
fee! that we are getting even with you,
and when you are blotted out altogether,
so that nothing remains but the unsaVory
name of your foul State, l shall feel that
the mill that has ground slowly has at
last ground not only fine but well.
Very truly yours,
This letter was written by n man who
probably had put his entire savings and
also some of his wife's money into bank
stock in a little town. He was called upon
to pay, ike all other stockholders East
the double liability act. 1t probably be-
came necessary to scale down some OF the
debts of the bank under the new law
which has put Kansas banks upon busI-
nesslike and safe basis. The letter, al
though Of exaggerated type, is illustrative
OF the brands that have been flying back
and forth from East to West, intiaming
the angry feelings between the two re-
gons, and showing the extent to which
men will go-men of intelligence. too.
when their money has been lost in such
tinanciering as swept over Kansas. There's
is another side to this Eastern feeling,
and It IS one that Mr.. Breidenthal with
some show Of pride, placed opposite to this
letter from the Connecticut man. He
quoted from the report for 1895 Of the Back
Commissioner Of New Hampshire, the,
State that was almost as sOrely chastened
as Kansas in the riotous speculation. The
report said, under the head of "Westerm
Investments" and speaking particularly
OF Kansas investments:
THE losses thus far have been largely
from classes OF investments that would
have proved disastrous whatever might
have been the condition Of the West"
In other words, there Is the testimony
OF the representative OF the chief suffer-
eTs OF the East, the New Hampshire farm
erS and Wage-earners, that II was the
speculative spirit and not the condition
Of Kansas and its agriculture that brought
ruin in Its wake.
There may be inquiry as TO how Kansas
could pay of 80 much of her mortgage
Indebtedness since 1890 One reason Is that
4 change In the law In that year gave the
mortgagee the privilege Of paying off a
In installments Of 500, or mul-
.lples Of that sum, and thousands of farm
ers aYailed themselves OF that privilege,
and this year will see their farms clear
get the money, even the small sums? The
answer is found in the amazing produc-
liveness Of Kansas since 1890 nOtwlth-
standing the crop failures. The State Ag-
'icultural Departments figures show that
since 1890 the farmers Of the State have
'aised In crops and 1--we stock nearly $1,000
10000 worth Of produce. The value Of
hose seven years Of produce Is more than
he national debt Of the United States.
The grand total for 1897 Is put at $230,-
1000 In 1890 1t was 1926 900 900; 1891 82S7,-
no 600; 1892, $213 0C0 0O0 1893 $220 900 OO0 1894
1872 600 900; 1895, S20l 900 0O0 1896 $lS9 00O 200:
otal, omitting all but general figures, 81
~, 900. The product of Kansas farms
or 1881 was Al 100000 more than in 1886,
md OF this increase 1000 600 was In corn,
wheat and oats. Another article will deal
With this increase in wealth and what IL
has meant to Kansas
To show that Kansas people are not re-
'udlatorg, her partisans point to the fact
hat at one time, owing to legislation In