Mexico weekly ledger., 1903-12-10
vANDIvER AT MEXICO.
Made a Brilliant Speech to a Repre-
sentative Audience Talk to the
Point,

Congressman VandIver in his ad.
dress at the Court House in Mexico
last Saturday In part said:
Il am proud Of the record of every
democratic administration in Mis-
souri, from that OF Woodson to Dock.
cry inclusive. AS a whole it is a
record that any party might well be
proud Of. ! have been personally
acquainted with every governor from
Hardin to the present incumbent.
CHARLES II. Hardin was my fathers
legal adviser when / was a boy and |
want to say right here in this town,
where his body sleeps, no better man
ever administered the affairs Of this
great State. The last two governors,
Stephens and Dockery, have had I'M
usual difficulties to contend with. 1t
Is no secret at all that | have some.
times differed with them strongly In
regard to personal matters, but / have
never doubted the integrity OF either.
NO BossIsM FOR THE COUNTRY.
81 do not believe in building up any
State machine for the purpose Of con-
trolling party policy or party nomina-
lions. l am not yet ready to say that
this is being done. / am waiting to
see whether 1t is or not. One thing is
certain: Missouri Democrats will not
stand bossism, In New York a Tam
many boss is respected and in st.
Louis he may be able for a time to
dictate and dominate party politics,
but the country Democracy will re-
pudiate any such effort. | believe
now, as | have said perhaps a thousand
times before, that Since Missouri's re-
turn to Democratic control, thirty
years ago, it has been the best govern
ed State in the Union.
"We have done what no other State
has been able to do, namely, lowered
our taxes and paid our bills at the
same time and also built up the finest
system Of public schools and public
institutions to be found in all this
proud land. 1t is also a matter Of
pride that the executive board Of the
State government has never been
open to any just charge of fraud,
peculation or embezelement. The
whole thirty years Of Democratic
ascendency has been a period Of hon.
est and faithful administration.
TIME TO MAKE PROMISES GOOD.
"But at least at one Of the legislative
branches certain abuses have crept in.
The lobby has been powerful and
thousand dollar bills have circulated
too freely among people whose salary
was supposed to be only So a day. Who
shall say that does not demand re-
form? To my personal knowledge we
have-in every campaign for the last
dozen years promised the people to
drive the lobby out Of Jefferson City.
An honest effort has been made ~ dc
so, but has IL succeeded Who is there
to deny the exposures Of corruption in
ST. Louis and Jefferson City has not
created a new issue in the minds OF
the people? You say IL is not an issue
because there is nobody TO champion
the boodlers' cause. No, not even the
boss boodler himself will do IL openly
But | will show you where the issue is,
There are really several issues in
yolved. Who exposed these frauds
and all this corruption? The evidence
and the concessions Of the guilty
shows that,they had been going on fol
twelve years at least and probably
longer. 1t was Joseph w. Folk who
exposed it and it would be a greylouS
blow to Democracy If it failed to pro
mote him. If we had sucha man, one
that has accomplished what Folk has
accomplished, we could carry Kansas,
Illinois, New York, Iowa and even
Massachusetts,"