The Topeka state journal., 1899-10-26
NO MORE PASSES
Railroads Withdraw Their
FavOrs to the Politicians.
At Least 1t Is So Reported by
the Officials.
500 HOME TO VOTE. -
This Excuse viii No Longer
Avail Anything.
Heretofore Railroads Have Be
Tented Under PRESSURE

The politicians who hold jobs under
the present administration and the fed
era1 office holders, too, will not go home
to vote this year unless they pay their
railroad fare.
The Kansas railroads have pooled on
this proposition and the ediet has gone
forth that no passes will be issued 70
men who desire to go from the place OF
their employment to their ho1nes 1of
election day.
The first class of men to come under
this new provision of the railroad men
were the state officers. The state mouse
employees have been planning to go
home on election day at least ana nave
cherished the fond hope of riding free
and on a pass furnished by the ra4l-
roads to them through the state ON
Ger who is fostering the po1tlca! anoI-
ton of the particular Individual.
One or two of the state officers made
application to the Santa Fe and ROCK
/ Island for election transportation but
were turned down. The refusal was
polite but pointed and now the state
officials announce to their friends that
it is impossible to procure the passes
desired.
one of the principal officers of road
prominent in Kansas and one of those
maintaining general offices in Topeka
wrote a state officer the following:
For years the railroads doing DuSl-
ness in Kansas have responded freely
to the requests for passes at election
dulged in and representatives OF all
parties have been treated alike. An
estimate of this free transportation so
furnished shows that it has amounted
to thousands of dollars annually and
we fail to see where any public good IS
! served. We have, therefore, so far as
this company is concerned, decided to
refrain from this practice in the tu-
| ture.'
This letter was a surprise to the state
officer who received 1t but he SAID
nothing and the report is that several
of the state house people have exper-
/ fenced a similar shock.
Estimating the number of men en-
! p1oyed in the state house, the asylum
1 and the reform school in this city,
| there are more than 100 of them who
J would go home to vote in their respec-
! tive counties were free transporta ton
/ furnished. But unless they pay their
| fare this year the county to which they
belong will not have the advantage of
| their services.
! One man at the state house has
| planned to go home and spend 10 days
| prior to the election working the coun-
/ ty, as he expressed it. The state officer
who was requested to procure a pass
/ and discovered that the county does
| not need working to the extent
! planned and the gentleman will not
! take a vacation for the election while
! other men are required to do the extra
/ work which would fall to them during
/ the. absence of this particular person.
/ Where the state house employees have
| announced their intention of going
! home to vote they have been requested
! to report for duty in Topeka the morn
/ ing following the election. AS one of
! the officers expressed it today:
| He can come home and need not re-
main to yell after the fight is over''
/ In state elections where the fight has
| been more closely contested in the past
/ free transportation has been furnished
/ to voters. The attitude of the railroads
| at this time makes the politicians fear
! that next year the same plan may be
/ adopted which if in force will necessi-
/ tate the expenditure of a large sum of
/ the committee funds to get the voters
! home. Next year the managers of the
/ various parties will see to it that none
! of the voters are left out on election
| day. There will be more fighting in the
! campaign next year than Kansas has
/ seen for some years and the great effort
will be made to get all the voters to the
/