The independent., 1903-12-10
A VOICE FROM ARKANSAS
W. s. Morgan OF 'fBuzz-Saw" Fame Writes
The Independent a Breezy Letter

populist papers published in this state
in 1891 as per the Nonconformist. l
regret very much to say that Ayers
Directory is correct, except that the
Buzz-Saw also is numbered with the
dead. | know of no populist paper
now being published in this state. Our
Country, published at Jonesboro, be-
came the Alliance Voice, at Batesville,
and after short and tempestuous life
starved to death. | bought the plant
and for a number of years used 1t for
manufacturing Buzz-Saws. The editor
of the Faulkner Wheel splendid
man by the way, met with a tragic
death, and his paper passed into the
tender hands OF the democracy. The
Morning Star, of Eureka Springs, new
er lived long enough to become an
Evening Star, and the Expositor, of
the same place, could not live on wa
ter alone, although they have splen-
did article of it at that place, and ex-
pired for want of belly timber. The
Advocate, of Heber, one Of the last
established in the state, made good
fight, but at last had to give 1t up.
The Chronicle and Rural Workman,
of Little Rock, fell by the wayside
early in the fight, in fact, think, be-
fore the peoples party was organ
lied. The Arkansas Economist, OF
Searcy, was suspected of being SO en-
phatically economical" as to turn
tail to our grand principles, creep in
to organized democracy through the
back door of fusion, and remain there.
Its editor died a natural death, and,
although his labor in the vineyard OF
justice was of but short duration, we
hope that he did enough in the good
cause to entitle him to home in
heaven. The Cottage Home. of Tex
arkana, died with bright future be-
hind it.
The Buzz-Saw, a part of which |
was, held on like grim death to dead
mule, and, like the Irishman, fought
durin' of the war, and for long
whole after" From the nature Of
the letters we have received since we
parted company with it, we have rea-
son to believe that it was loved by
its friends for the enemies 1t made,
and by its enemies for its artistic skill
in ripping them up the back" 1t
was transplanted into Kentucky soil
where it died for want of gore. 1t was
paying reasonably well, and it's circu-
lation rapidly increasing among its
enemies, when I bade it fearful fare
we'll, but its editor CHATS me) be-
came weary of the ever-shifting vicis-
situdes of practical politics, and hav-
ing exhausted the vocabulary of ex-
pletives of three languages in vain
effort to do justice to the situation,
transferred it, with all the heredita-
ments and appurtenances thereunto
belonging, to other hands, and has
since that time been sitting under his
own vine and red apple tree, except
when he is building ash-hoppers and
sticking peas for his better half two
thirds) who still insists that her
many prayers and supplications to the
Throne of Mercy were answered in
the aforesaid transfer.
Since the transfer above mentioned
| this deponent hath taken but little
interest in politics. | started out n
years ago to / elp save the country. In
the simple. trusting buoyancy Of ex-
uberant youth | thought, with the as
sistance of such grand old men as
Peter Cooper, Solon Chase, Jesse Har-
per. and scores and hundreds of 9th
ers, that it ought to be short job, q
year or two at most. We worked and
talked, and sweat and bled, and did
everything but die. But, "You know
too we'll the story of our thralldom.
Time and again we fixed the date for
the contamination of our efforts, thf
beginning of the millennium. But
somehow. or somewhere, cog woulf
slip and the country would wabbl'
along In the same old rut. Then VIZ
spat on our hands, sent our wives am
children TO board with our fathers-lr
law put a new patch on our pants
borrowed some more money of on
friends. and went at the fight agar
with renewed zeal. All. II the stor
boxes on the street corners the plcn'
stands. and the school houses ooul'
tell the story of the tisht made y
those days. II would he talo OF hcrf
I