Kansas City journal., 1898-02-11
KANSAS TOPICS.

a strange thing is just now happening in
Kansas. Mr.. +. d. Coburn announced in
Pubic manner that he was not and would
not become a candidate for governor. No
man who is acquainted with Mr. Coburr
will for a moment question his sincerity.
When he stood up before the Kansas edit
orial convention at Kansas City and in
formed Its members that he was not. IN the
race for governor, he believed that the
question had been unalterably settled and
that his name would no longer be used in
connection with that high office. Ordinar-
lily III Kansas politics such an announce
rient as was made by Mr.. Coburn would
have been sufficient to dismiss its maker
from any further consideration, but Kansas
is queer this year and IS doing eXtraor-
dinary things. Instead of accepting the Co
burn announcement as final, the friends or
Coburn are going right along exploiting
his candidacy. They say that the man who
does not want to be governor of Kansas Is
the very man Kansas ought 10 make COVER
Eor. and that the state will never regret
the refreshing experiment of electing q ciu-
zen who is not q politician.
In his address TO the Kansas editors Mr..
Coburn gave expression TO sentiment that
is liable to misinterpretation. He said he
did not want to be governor of Kansas. His
friends say that what he meant was that
he did not want to run for the Office OF
governor of Kansas. There is broad dis
tinction here. There is no man anywhere
who would not proudly accept the office OF
governor of his state. but it Is quite con-
ccvable that distaste for the ways of poll
itics would prevent many a man from seek
ing such an honor. Mr.. Coburn is not 4
politician. He has never been candidate
for anything. Since his name was men
toned in connection with the office lie has
been pursued by the small-bore politicians.
He has found them camped on his door,
step. He has been prevented from per-
forming the duties of his present office by
tier persistency. They were not the real
politicians, but the flock of little insects
which, like the mosquito. came there to
dip their bills in blood. What is more nat
ural, then, that a man who is young in
politics and as green in some of the mod
ern political practices as the first shoot of
as paragus in the spring, should take alarm.
This is the way the friends of Mr.. Coburn
aEalyZe the situation. They declare that
they will continue to run him for governor.
Mr.. Del Valentine is quoted as authority
for the statement that after Mr.. Coburn
had delivered his speech to the Kansas
EDITORS a lot of them met and decided to
keep pegging away at the Coburn boom.
Confession of good Christian woman in
a letter to the Atchison Globe: Il see an
item in your paper in which it is said that
no one is so good he can resist the tempta-
ton to mentally supply the swear words
represented in newspapers by blanks or
dashes. / wish to say that though l am
a church member. the passion for supply
ing such blanks is one cannot resist. 1t
is more fascinating than a missing word
nUZZle and I Tina 7
blanks that 1 am not more familiar with
swear expressions. 1 have no trouble sup
plying four blanks in succession, but what
do six blanks stand for? And l recently
ran across al item containing eight blanks.
and have been puzzled ever since to sup
ply them. Ny husband does not swear, and
it would shock him SO terribly if he knew
l was interested in supplying blank swear
words, that don't dare let him know that
1 am racking my brain day and night to
find what the eight blanks stand for"
Ed Howe says there has been but one
good joke printed in the funny papers in
the whole year past. 1t is this: "a tough
was being tried by a jury. The defendant
the judge said may challenge any member
Of the jury The tough looked the jury
over, and replied: IF that little bloke with
side whiskers Will step outside. will fight
him. "
The Leavenworth Standard is our au-
thority for the, following account of an
episode which occurred in court at Leav-
enworth the other day: 1t seems that
Colonel D. r. Anthony and John Douglass
had been for some time engaged in litiga-
ton over tax title to certain property.
Senator Lucien Baker had been Colonel
Anthonys attorney. but by reason of the
senator's enforced absence in Washington
when the case came on for trial, Colonel
Anthony engaged John Atwood. the well
known Democratic politician. to plead his
cause. Atwood had long been the target
for Anthonys adverse criticism. and. when
he rose to address the. court. he secured
revenge in a speech that has, or will. set
the whole state to laughing. According to
the Standard he said:
May It please the court: I congratulate
myself upon the judicial frame of mind in
which am enabled to approach a consid-
Grafton Of this case For my perfected
appreciation of the many virtues that
Judge Douglass possesses, and Colonel An
thongs failure to appreciate any of my
virtues. leaves me in state delightfully."-
impartial. Ordinarily lawyers zeal for
his clients cause outruns his Judgment hut
when that client has knocked out the blng
from the hogshead of his wrath and del
nged him with the contents until he wades
up to his middle in troubled waters, q sit
uation is presented that tends to neutralize
the lawyers zeal until it is reduced to a
judicial calmness that is without bias; and
I am able to undertake a discussion of this
case without prejudice. passion or any feel
ing.
THE one thing that is wrong about the
case is that your honor cannot find against
both the parties to this suit. From the
standpoint Of personal merit. neither of
them ought to win. Neither of them came
into court with clean hands. and I have
doubts about their feet. But Anthony has
paid the taxes for many years on the prop
erty, and in so doing has contributed TO
the revenue of the state and county. This
is playing the part of the good citizen. a
part that is new to him, that sets awk-
wardly upon him. and one that startles
the community with Its novelty But since
he Is playing this part he ought to be en-
couraged in it by being permitted to win
this suit. When you find one doing right
for the first time in his life, the thought OF
discouraging him revolts the judicial con-
science. If it is said that Anthony stole
horses in Missouri. 1 reply that Douglass
has stolen homesteads in Kansas: il It is
said that Anthony has been detriment
to the county, 1 reply that Douglass has
never paid a debt he owed the county; il
it is said that Anthony has been sued often
1 reply that Douglass has sued others twice
as often.
.I Will admit. your honor. that 1t is a
choice of evils; one of the evils has a
hooked nose and the other has q. peg leg;
but the hooked nose pays his taxes. and
the peg leg don't, and that is where my side