The Farmington times. [volume] (Farmington, Mo.) 1874-1902, 1900-08-23
TIE STATE CAMPAIGN.

Missouri to the combat for state xu
premacy, and I therefore propose u
enter upon n brief aRaiysin of tn
records of the opposing parties. Tn
people can best judge OF the value ant
sincerity of the promises Of politica
parties by the records Of past per
formances. Both of the great partie'
have heretofore controlled the desti
MICS Of this state. The official rrcOrd
win determine with certainty n
unerriug as the laws CT gravitation
or the rbb and flow % the tides, which
| party should hereafter he charge,
with the high responsibility of th'
administration Of the affairs of thil
wonderful state.
The republican party controlled th'
administration of the affairs of oui
state from 1865 TO 1870 inclu
siye. The liberal republican par
~ was In power during III,
years OF 1871 and 1879. The demo
cratic party resumed control under
the administration of Gov. Siln,
Woodson tho LIST Of January, 1873
Ito control would have been undis
turbcd but for the LAND slide" oi
1884, which gave three state office.
and the house of representatives Ia
the control OF the republican party
! and az the same time sent ten rrpub'
lican congrcNSmcn TO the national leg.
islature. AZ that time, for reasons
satisfactory 90 themselves, more than
$1,000 democrats in the state re.
manned az home on election day. The
reasons related TO national, rath-
cr than 10 state affairs. There will
be no stay ~ home vote" in the
ranks Of the aggressive democracy OF
Missouri at the couLuF election
The republican party hnsinyitcd the
democracy to comparison of rec
ords. II shall he made. The demo
cratic party demands the most exact.
ing scrutiny OF its financial record.
The republican party can not escape
the odium Of iiE shameful maladmiu.
istrati0n. The democratic record is
a record Of honesty, sagarity and fru-
gality In the collection aud disburse-
mcnt Of the peoples money. The re-
publican record b. an exhibit OF
whnton and corrupt p-odignlity In adj.
ministration. without parallel except
among the carpet bag governments %!
the south, Immediately succeeding the
civil war.
From January I, 1879, 10 July rs,
1000. the democratic administrations
Of Missouri collected Of the peoples
money for public purposes sIu3,256.-
gja.2l, iucludinR the proceeds Of the
sales Of renewal bonds. This money
tcNccpt Si,ff0,02o.23 In the treasury
WIS disbursed without the loss OF \
dollar TO the Taxpayers, while all the
various functions OF government have
been wisely administered.
HISTORY OF THE RAILROAD DEBT
The state debt In 1901, when the civ.
II war began, amounted to S24 ,J25 900,
Hll Of which, except sC22 600. was in
CURED 10y the issue Of bonds 10 aid
In the construction of railroads. Prior
to the civil war, Missouri and other
states Of the Union,ndoptcd the policy
OF aiding In the construction Of trunk
line railroads. Whenever one Of the
aided roHds established 10 the salts
faction uf the governor that IN stock
holders had actually expended a Ger
tain amount for construction and
equipment, the governor, rs autho.-
lied by law, issued and delivered
bonds 10 such road To the amount Of |
onc.half 81 the money so expended |
the state retaining the first lien on all |
the property of the railroad compa-
mics including the lands granted by
congress. 10 IN obvious, therefore, !
that no loss was possible except |
through fraud. Eight Of the trunk |
lines Of the state were thus bond-aid.
ri. aud all OF them, except the Hanni. |
bal & St. Joseph railroad, dcfauited
in tho payment of interest on the
PONDS at the beginning or early in
he civil war.
No efforts were made by the state
turing the war to collect the amounts
Tue the state, These railroads cost
"a ,4O2 600, and we're amply sufficient
o secure the payment OF the indebt-
'dncss due the state. Indeed, Gov.
fletcher, in his inaugural address, in
January, 1868. declared that they
we're ample security for the amounts
dyanccd to them respectively"
In 1865, during the administration
u Gov. Fletcher. the republican leg.
stature sold" the states liens on
he railroads, then amounting to s3l,-
$3.50, TO various republican poiiii-
ians and promoters, and realized for
he state but $6.i3i ,496, loss OF s25,.
OI.34i TO the tax payers. The so
allied sales" Of the railroads by the
epublican legislature involved a very
nipple process. Where the property
nd already been sold" by Gov
'lctcher's commissions to the lowest
nd worst bidders, as was done In the
ase of the Iron Mountain and Cairo
Fulton roads, the purchasers
we're released from paying the pur.
base money, and where no such sales
ad been made by commissions, the
ems held by the state were trans
erred TO certain favored sons"
AIMED in the laws, as free gift, or In
of trifiing sums OF
honey.
by the actof March 81. 1868, the repub-
can administration released the lien
n the Pacific road (now the Missouri
aciiic) for ss,o0O,0 600, the states lien
cling SIC, 10000. The lien of $1,000, 900
n the North Missouri tnow the Wa
ASH thea completed across the state, {
-as sold for $4,000 10 certain per-
Dns named In the law.
The Southwest branch of the Pa =
tic (uow the Friscol, with a federal
md grant Of 100000 acres of land,
n which the state held lien of So !.
. ITO, was given away as n free gift
, another set OF republican promo
rs and politicians, the only condi- J
on being that the road should be
xtended 10 tho western boundary of
~ state, and NO ON down the line,
,leases were made until every bond
ded road except one was acquitted !.
the indebtedness due the state. A..
FIau - - 4