The Topeka state journal., 1900-08-20

more easily average QO2S
ordinary business Like a skilled machfn-
| ist, he touches the proper wheels and lev
ers & to make the ,1a machine GO, While 1ha Ibis his
and goddesseS of Olympus swapping
| lies with the catfish aristocrats of the
If Mr.. ingalls, were not indolent-in his
own peculiar way-he might, it seems, by
| this time, have gained a reputation world
wide instead of merely national.
His incidence shows in his comparative
| ly few and spasmodic speeches and other
literary productions and in the repetition
of his own phrases and forms. 1t shows
also in his carelessness of appointments
his reluctance about going among the
people in the fashion of Blaine and Glad
athy for doing the usual drudgery of his
position either in absorbing great bodies
| of important facts pertaining to the
| affairs of state, or in doing errands for
| constituents. It is due to this Incidence
| (the Incidence of genius it may bel that
| he has made no particular record as an
tntroducer of important bills or an inven-
tor of ways and means, or a pioneer in
any branch of economies or a champion
of any particular reforms. He has not
been conspicuous in the great party con-
ventiOnS and he is little relied on in the
party councils.
He is an ex-officio statesman. This is
meant to convey the idea that his char
acteristics not those of the typical
for running the government and assumes
the responsibility of pushing great re-
FORMS He takes almost exclusively the
negative position of the critic. He lets
other people paint the picture and himself
No one can say. truthfully that this is
not great and legitimate field for use
fulness.
Neither can one deny that it is a dam
gerous and difficult field to occupy
1t is so much easier to criticise than to
create; and the critic so readily wins ap-
plause from the jealous, carping, unchar-
table and ungenerous side of the world
that his Temptation to become a pirate is
well nigh irresistible.
Mr.. ingalls, is almost exclusively a
critic, and hence I say he is an ex-of-
fcio statesman. His office and his nature
are divergent. He cares as much about
party platforms as a cannibal chief about
the Nicene Greed. In such matters he is
neither hampered by conscience nor him
votes right, but his votes do not follow
'prayerful consideration of the subject
in hand.
In negation only is Mr.. ingalls, active:
81 am something of kicker, myself.
said he in his Topeka speech, but / am
born one, should wish to be born again."
And yet he has quarreled with the leaders
much willingness to kick any Mug
wump in MASSACHUSETTS,. In fact, he is
probably the highest, hardest kicker on
or off the variety stage of American poll
tics.
The Mugwumps ought to love him for
this. But they do not.
HIS SPARKLING INCONSISTENCY.
Mr.. ingalls, has another Mugwump char
castiron Repubiicanism and reckless Recall
citrance- He is no mean slave of conSiS-
frs Therefore G pigs puzzle % to
those who do not happen to either love
feeings min mingled and uncerfain. The best
of editors are for him one week and
equally divided. Some pronounce him the
greatest of our senators and others call
glers' gimcrack which makes them tired.
OF those who applaud him, the majority
Of those who hiss him, few are able to
give adequate reasons for so doing. But
this much is certain: He is a conspicuous
and remarkable man, and can command
the attention of a nation out of the sem
ate well in it-many think better.
OF how many men can this be truthfully
said?
tends to be what he IS not Ingalls, only
pretends to be Ingalls,.
For instance, he is not a churchman. In
fact he is impious. He takes not stock in
religious stock companies He SCOTS, and
talks agnosticism, and is profane, and in
such ways arrogates to himself a large
badness.
which should follow does not seem to.
Among his most ardent friends in Kan
DR.. Fisher and the Rev. Bernard Kelly,
of the Methodist church, and others, who
are among the most devout, punctilious
and respected of eccIesiastics. They can
not stand Ingerson, but ingalls, passes
voting for Ingersol for any place except
the bottomless pit, but for Ingalls, no
Now, this is not because ingalls, is a
fraud and pretends to be pious, when he is
wild and woolly. 1t is because ingalls, in
this matter as in all others does as Daniel
did in the lions den. By not seeming to
care a cent for the lions he gains their re-
Spect, their roaring, rampant respect.
In this connection let me say that do
not in the least doubt that the Rev
Frank T. ingalls,, the senator's charming,
eloquent and devout brother. in SPRING
field, feels that he has his brothers pro-
foundest sympathy, respect and admira-
ton in the noble work he is doing as presi-
dent of Drury college. Indeed. one of the
heaviest possible counterbalanceS to the
senator's assumed desperateness of char
acter is the fact that in his deepest, quiet
est life he demonstrates that he is no
fraud by his manifest hatred of frauds
and by his love for the best things
Mr. Ingalls, is jocular critic. He rare
ly exercises his critical functions unless
there is to be real sport in the perform
ance. He is scarcely Neronic- The cruel
ties of Nero are not so much in his line
as the antics of Mephistopheles. Had he
been in Ewes place he would have had
the serpent tied up in a double bow knot
in about five minutes
1 am also glad to believe that had he
been in Adams place when called to ac-
count he never would have Shamefully
put the blame all on Eve.
No man who must have a joke is quite
fit for treaSonS, stratagemS and SpOilS-
The senator must have a joke.
He is said to have given a large amount
of fireWood to the poor of Atchison. In