Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1898-10-07
KNOWLES AND KELLEY
Their Record on the National sanitariun
Measure-How They Neglected
Their Own state.

cold treatment Congressman Knowles
met with at Edgemont, and added:
"Fall River county can't forget his
gross neglect of the national sanitari-
um bill"
To this the Rapid City Union took
exceptions, and in an explanatory arti-
Gle under the caption to this article
s'easily explained"-said:
s'His gross neglect of the sanitarium
bill has been fully explained in every
talk he has made in the Hills, includ
ing the one at Hot Springs. He favored
the bill, worked early aud late to get it
through and only gave up when there
was no hope. 1t is not expected, how
ever, that the republican newspapers
will admit that he did anything for the
I measure. They would rather blame
Nim for something for which he is in
no way responsible, SO this charge of
sgfoss neglect is trumped up. 1t is as
silly as the old anarchist cry"
The STAR hasn't been anxious at all
to expose Congressman Knowles-and
Kelley in this sanitarium matter, for
they probably desired to help secure
that government institution for Hot
Springs. But for some unaccountable
reason they failed to do anything at
the critical time and in fact there is
no evidence that they ever did any
thing in Lehalf of the bill. We do not
know how Mr.. Knowles has ''eNplained"
his action 81 i'll every talk he has made
i'll the Hills,' but if he can, people
hereabouts would like to have him en-
plain the following:
In the Congressional Record of June
50, page 725S, when the House Confer
ence committee on the Sundry Civil
appropriation bill reported that they
had failed to agree with like commit
tee from the senate, Mr.. Cannon, who
had charge of the measure, reported
the Soldiers Home Sanitarium at Hot
Springs, S. d., as one of the items to
which the House committee objected.
Among other contentious of the com
mittee, was that the government had a
hos pital for the regular army at Hot
Springs, Ark, and that soldiers and
sailors of the late war might be admit
ted there.
Now why did not Congressman
y Knowles Kelley-make himself
heard at once, and properly explain
s4the real objects of the bill for the loca-
tion of the sanitarium at this place
SO much has been said regarding it
and SO much literature printed that
the school children of South Dakota
know that the objects of their sanitar.
ium are that the rheumatic veterans
and others who can be made more
comfortable by living here may come
here and be cured and be made as
comfortable and happy as possible in
their declining years; for men who do
not want to be sent to hospital in.
tended for the sick and dying members
Of the regular army. 1t is to be a
"home" for large army of veterans
who are filed with aches and pains
contracted from exposure in the ser
vice of their country. 1t is intended
for just such class of worthy old vet
erans as the government went to the
expense of sending here to test this
climate and these waters in 1893
Why did not Congressman Knowles
"explain" some of these things when
the matter was being talked about?.
Then again Mr.. Cannon said:
'The House conferees have held that
there is no considerable soldier popu.
lation in Dakota; that it is too far west
that its climate and location do not
warrant the building of Soldiers
Home."
Why did not our Congressman
Knowles explain the Iacts in the case
when MIR. Cannon made that state
ment? Why did he not say that MIR
Cannon and his committee were assum-
/ ing to know more than the Board OF
4 Managers of all the National Homes,
for they had strongly recommended
Hot Springs, South Dakota, and said
such an institution was needed And
why did he not quote some of the
strong endorsements that Gen. Aver
ell, aL that time assistant inspector
general of National Homes. who knew
the exact condition of all the Homes
and the members of them AS we'll, il
not better, than any other one person!
II our populistic congressman could
do no better why in the name of the
thousands Of veterans all over the
grant west did thav not ,noI xba foI
lowing which was adopted by the man.
ayers of the Soldiers Homes of Colo
RADIO, Minnesota and Kansas, which
would have given the House of Repre-.
sentatives some idea as to the exact
facts:
.Wheress it is the policy of the Ma
tional Board of Managers for Disabled
Volunteer Soldiers Homes to provide
= sanitarium for the treatment of ex-
n m