Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1899-03-16

| Washburn; was with him in Arkansas
when he died, and like all those who
knew that great son of Maine, thinks
he was the biggest man on whom the
sun of Wisconsin ever shone.
Senator Withee has rough exterior
and he votes wrong on some questions,
but II you want to see the light blue
eyes kindle under the shaggy gray
lashes and the mouth lines soften like
a Woman's, you get the old man talk
| Ing about when he was a boy beside
the gentle Kennebec or his early hard
ships in the virgin forests of the wild
erness which he has done so much to
! subdue.
| Teuth Week of Session.
This Is the beginning Of the tenth
| week of the legislature. Things are
moving slowly. OF the sis bills intro
duced in the assembly, sixty-five have
passed that body and eighty have been
officially killed" Only eleven of the
sixty-five have gone to the governor.
| 1t looks very slow on the face of it,
| butthe important bills are pretty we'll
! understood by this time, and when both
| branches get tired of reference to COM
mittee to be courteous to somebody, the
slaughter will be by the score of bills
per day.
Parceling Out Pie by the Map.
The biggest thing that happened to US
last week was the passage by the SEN
ate Of McGillivrays bill to parcel out
the patronage of the state by counties.
The vote was 16 to 10. The university
people breathed long breath when,
at the last moment it was decided to
omit the faculty from the grabbag.
Otherwise If President Adams needed a
teacher of bacteriology and 1t was
Forrest county's turn to reach for pie,
Forrest county would fill the chair. &c.
too, If the agricultural school needed a
man to tie up cows and sow sugar beet
seed, the classic purlieus of the Pollock
ward of Milwaukee might be called
upon to surrender it's choicest son.
1t Is difficult to discuss this patron
age scheme seriously. When there is
so much talk of civil service reform in
the air, the proposition is wrench of
! the hand of progress backward on the
| dial of destiny.
| LaFolIette's Editor Tells Story.
The best story told here at the meet
ing of the State Press association was
not by Ex-Governor Hoard, or eX-Gov-
| ernor Peck-both of whom We're much
in evidence-but by Roger M. Andrews
the editor of the LaFollette paper, The
State. The debate was on the free-pass
| Mr.. Rock Flint made a brilliant re-
| view of the history of the giving Of
| pass favors not only to lawmakers, but
to preachers, etc, and traced the growth
of the curious custom, and others had
| discussed 1t when Andrews unloaded
the following:
He said an impecunious newspaper
man was cumming his 10y from Chi
cago to Louisville where he had heard
there was a vacancy on Henry Waiter
| sons Courier Journal He had not
cent on his person, but when the con-
ductor touched him on the shoulder the
traveller made as If to present a pass.
That's strange" the cheeky newspa-
per man said, feeling in his pockets.
I'm city editor of The Courier Journal
and have lost my transportation
Don't be worried" replied the con-
ductor, politely. Mr.. Watterson is in
| the Pullman just ahead, and If he'll
identify you, it will be all right"
The penniless traveller was nearly
dead with fright, but few moments la
| ter the conductor led him into the next
car.
Mr.. Watterson," said he, this young
man says he is your city editor. You
| identify him?"
Certainly" replied the great man.
"He has been with us fourteen years"
The scribe went back to his car. Fear
had given way to wonder. Finally, his
curiosity could stand it not longer. He
| III Cd hnnlx int bn Pullman
Excuse me. Colonel Watterson, but
l would like to know why you made 1t
so easy for me tonight. l was never in
Louisville. l never saw you before in
my life.
| Hush" replied the great man, look
ing round fearfully. Don't say one
word. My name amt Watterson. I'm
travelling on his pass"
| The story didn't have any particular
point, but it broke us all up for a
number of minutes
Losing Ground In Clay Products.
The geographical survey people want
$3.50 for their work. 1t may be inter-
esting to know that Wisconsin is fif-
teenth in the list of states in the value
OF her granite products; ninth in the
value of her sandstone products, and
| eighth in the value or her limestone
products. The total value of the gran
lite Quarried in the United States for
1896 was 1884 1894 Wisconsin's share
! of this total was only $l26639 Out of a
total output of $4,02S,l99 of sandstone,
Wisconsin exploited $65,017 worth. The
total output of limestone was $l3, 022, 637,
of which Wisconsin quarried $685., 1921
worth. In the stone industry, as a
whole. Wisconsin at present ranks
thirteenth, but with better apprecia-
ton of the value of Wisconsin stone and
a knowledge that 1t is not surpassed
by imported stone, there seems to be
little question but that Wisconsin's rank
will be far above that which 1t at pres
ent holds
In a manner similar to that in which
the building stones have been investi-
gated, 1t is the purpose Of the survey to
investigate the clay industry Of the
state. Wisconsin now ranks nineteenth
among the states in the value of her
yearl output of clay products. Three
wears ago she held twelfth place, The