The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1901-05-14
JUDGE MUSELLER'S ADDRESS
Eloquent Noble County Citizen Makes
n GFeat speech

The cause OF this magnificent gatherine
| OF people is not an unusual one, for as
! long as our form Of government en-
/ dures and the old flag floats over an
| undivided nation, so long will inaugural
/ ceremonies periodically occur. Indeed,
/ our system Of government makes inaugli-
I rations compulsory. as it were. The
outgoing officials surfeited with honor.
having been clothed IN the royal purple
Of official preferment for the snoted
time, with the graceful manner Of Chest
] erield, step down and out, for the Ameri-
can who cannot gracefully yield an
Office when his time has expired is scarce
y large enough TO III II. The new Off
Gals Rune their ardous duties with
that grave mein which betolzens anx-
iety, worry and responsibility, and yet.
withal, carries with it the comforts and
Joy of ambition gratifed. Both are in a
measure happy, and therefore no one is
injured when we say as Of old: "The
king is dead. long live the king"
1 know fun wen as 7 gaze over this
intelligent audience that the good judg-
ment exercised by the committee re-
sponsible for my appearance here, VIII be
measured entirely by what I this day
say to you. Intelligence is critical II
heeds neither fear nor favor. and While
it's verdict is sometimes harsh its judg-
ment is always right. More than one
hundred years ago the forced tyranny
Of kings eliminated in the Declaration
OF Independence and the Organization
Of our government, which has since that
time lead all the other nations OF the
world in its love for individual liberty.
To appreciate fully the splendid work
Of our forefathers we should not forget
the condition of humanity and its petty
governments OF that time. oNrth and
South America, colonies for the most
part. simply re-echoed the sentiments
Of their respective mother countries.
China and India, then as now. were
struggling to feed their starving mil
lions, without a hope Of future advance
ment- Egypt Persia. Greece. Rome
and Spain. had each in It's time arisen.
reached the zenith Of its fame. and
passed into comparative obscunty. Sue
cessive civilizations had appeared. found
ed populous empires. and then had with
cred and died as though the curse Of
Cain were upon their brows-
There seems 70 be no solid rock upon
which the foundation q a lasting govern
ment could be erected. They did what
they could but nothing was substantial. {
All those nations possessed their Inherent
elements Of decay. There was nothing
left OF Egypt but her her poverty and
pyramids with her living representa- +
tlves unblushingiy begging bach-sheesh
Of the Angio-Ssxon traveller Persia
was an absolute monarchy with 70 one
free within her borders and her own
grand record Of the past unknown and
unheeded bv her people The inhaEt- .
ants Of Greece. descendants ~ the lrl- f
mortal Deuosthenes and Cicero had .
long before 6sRenerataa into a CORY lot
of goat herders. happy and satis6ed with
their l0wlv CONDITION Rome. once tire .
proud mistress q the world. had 60
far rerogated that her people represent .
90 no more than their descendants CO to-
day. who travel the world over earning
2 mere pIttance wifh s1ucaky hard
organ and F5aberish r1orker-unc11th
entertsiners Of THE lftls f0lks only
spain was il the evening twilight ~ her
national ne slowly sinking i1t1 insigri-
icance 70 the dllcet tones n soft rui,ar
ard tinkiing casfanet France vss on
me eve - might revolution zish ln-
.rigues on every hand undermining her
g1vcruDent Germany vas IetharEic ard