The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-07-12

Capital OF Fred Vandegrift:
There is a theory that the most poten
tial hand on the throttle of Kansas il
that of Cy Leland Popular belief cred
its Long, Bailey, Burton, Mulvane. Al
baugh. Curtis and a host of major ant
minor satellites with the candle powe
that lights the way But, as matter o.
fact. "Old Van runs the state. -'Ol'
Van" has corrected more abuses, has
called more bluffs, and has turned more
A1ings into jacks than any other Kansas
man of his day and generation What Cy
Leland thinks about a given subjec
may. or may not, be of consequence in &
Kansas community. What Odd Van
thinks is always important Wherever
the Kansas City Star finds its way there
he is relied upon to uncover the political
ifourfiusher, reveal the past and fortel
the future.
They. christened him Frederick LeandeE
Vandegrift. That was in Ohio fifty years
ago, and in perpetuating the family name
the head OF the house precipitated trouble
upon the succeeding generation Kansas
has wrestled with the name since 1878
and still spells it incorrectly more than
two-thirds Of the time There are ex-
ceptious TO all rules: occasionally you
meet a man who can spell ''Vandegrift'
without looking on the book. But more
variations ranging all the way from
'Predegrsst'' TO ''Vandegrip" have been
played upon It than fell to the lot Of the
hate, Iamented Ceptimus Winners Mock
ing Bird" Vandegrift came to Kansas in
1873 and located in Atchison. He was
fresh from a law school then and casting
anxiously about for toehold on the edge
of success. He had passed his boyhood
In Keokuk. Iowa, and just beyond the
picturesque bluffs of the Mississippi in
Hancock county, III. It is worthy OF
note Ia passing that Noble Prentis, with
whom Vandegrift's life was Unfortunately
linked in the later years, was also from
Hancock county, and that Henry King.
who left ineffaceable imprint on the early
Kansas Journalism. had his origin in the
same civil subdivision. There is some
thing in landscape and atmosphere. They
stamp themselves upon the very soul of
the child. And no one who has stoop upon
the bluffs of the Mississippi where it
gathers it skirts about its ankles and
trips past Keokuk. Warsaw and Alexan-
dria-no one who has felt the spell or
the opalescent haze that settles over that
landscape and the caressing breath Of the
breeze that filters through twill seek
farther for the origin Of the kindly. gen
tie genius OF Prentis, the forceful ability
of King or the brusque originality Of Van
degrift.
Vandegrift practiced law in Atchison for
O year Perhaps it were better to say THAI
he evinced a willingness TO practice law.
But Impotence in A lawyer is heavy
Inability instead of an asset and Vande-
srift was impatient At the end of q year,
wearied already of waiting for business,
he took down his sign and cast about for
something better. The opportunity came
so carefully concealed that Vandegrift
did not recognize it until long after he
had accepted it. The railroads were very
courteous to newspaper men in those days.
The editorial excursion was as common
and as free as the Wednesday evening
prayer meeting. on one Of these excur-
sions to Putin Bay Vandegrift went rep
resenting the Atchison Patriot. Vande-
grift was idle the editor of the Patriot
was busy, and the two We're friends, So
Nandegrift went and on the trip incu-
bated his first newspaper story. On this
trip went also Justice w. r. Smith OF
the supreme court then a struggling
young lawyer of Atchison. Smith was a
friend Of the editor of the Champion
and the editor of the Champion was also
busy What Smith wrote on the trip is
not now 50 important as the things Van
degrift wrote but the journey to Putin
Bay marked the beginning Of a lifelong
intimacy between Vandegrirt and Smith.
Lifelong intimacies as not uncommon.
but they are interesting when they are
between men borne on the same day of the
same year in widely diverged communi-
ties the resemblance between whom is so
great as to puzzle the friends OF BOTH.
Smith and Vandegrift were not only born
on the same day of the same year but
they look so much alike that Col. Major
.Jeltz of the State Ledger. out potting can
didates one day last fan. withdrew the
support Of the Ledger from Smith be-
cause Vandegrift refused to subscribe for
his paper.
The letters Vandegrift wrote from Put
in-Bay took" Coming back TO Atchison
he was besieged 10 put some money into
the long since departed Atchison Patriot
and che fever Of writing having grown
upon him he put down 81. $50 for half
interest, and became one of the editors
of the paper. The Patriot was a water
logged ship always Just on the point OF
foundering in the waves OF adversely. Il
had the misfortune to be born Democrat
&c. always a fatal handicap to a Kansas
daily. Eventually it sank. but long after
Vandegrift had lost the money he put
into it. From the Patriot Vandegrift went
10 the Champion as city editor He was +
the first man who could not set type that
John 4. Martin ever hired. and with one
exception the only one. The Champion
triumvirate in those days was Martin. .
Prentis and VandeSrift. II was COM Z
b:nation that 10 this day keeps the mem Z
DRY of the Champion green Vandegrift
was on the Champion more or less Tor a
decade. Two or three times he diversi-
fed newspaper work with zinc mining at
Galena, and finally went to the Atchison
Globe for n brief stay In 1891 he followed !
Prentis 10 the Kansas City Star. The I,
Star, after some months. passed Vande- 1
srift from the editorial rooms 70 the city /,
desk. IL was on the Stars city desk
that he first tapped the three-foot vein Of
trouble The stun turned in By the re
porters for the Star did not suit him. 4
SO he rewrote it. The Job Of rewriting !
the local copy for metropolitan news
paper Is calculated 10 keep a man very
80 ! e