Mower County transcript., 1904-09-21

FARMER BEN'S COLUMN.
Well, we've had another try at, that
wonderful primary election law and
now what does any sensible voter
think of the pretense of it? 1t claims
to Civ a man 8 chance to vote directly
for anybody he pleases for candidates
but you don't get any such chance but
hav to pick out of the names that hav
put up ten dollars and got their name
printed on the ballot. ANY old snide
and galoot, the meanest man in the
county can qualify. All he has to do
is to put up the ten dollars. The vote
is all concentrated in the big centers
like Austin where it will get out. and
they hav the preponeratin' influence IN
namin' all candydates. Under the OLD
system, every part of the county had
fair voice in proportion to its last
vote at election. Under the new snide,
ten times bigger political power is Civ
en- at the primaries to the centers,
where the saloons are, and the country
can whistle. If any body will tell me
how people get really any such thing
as direct nominations accordin' to
their own wish and pick out OF this
farce I'll Civ 'em the first nickel find
growin' on bush. The actual condi-
ton is that the rankest kind of candy
dates are now liable to put up ten dol
lars and get their names on the pri-
mary ballot and in three or four cor
nered fight put up on purpose the poor
est stick with not third of the whole
vote cast can get there and lick out the
rest. Oh, this daisy of way to let
politicians steal the nominations over
the heads of the voters.
O O Q
The schemers are settin' up the pins
for another state board. AS farmer
Ben has often reiterated this state is
already ridden to death by graftin'
boards but so long as there is folks
that fgger to get livin' so long will
there be schemin' goin' on to create fat
new positions. The latest is to hav a
state board of eddication to put over
the university and all the other eddica-
tional state institutions to divide with
the board of control. If this swindle
goes thro, then a set of ignoramuses
will apply for members and there won't
be any decent control of our eddication.
Just think Of putin a lot OF. .ninnies
and light weights to tell prexy North
rup what to teach and how to teach at
the state university. Why, prexy knows
more in one little corner of his head
than sixteen hundred of the hungry
politicians lookin' for easy job know
in all their extent of knowledge. It's the
same in smaller way with the normal
schools and the rest. The board of
control now bosses the finances of these
and they hav big job at that, but
when it comes to bossin' the larnin'
side they would be like six year old
boys in class of calculus. If Farmer
Ben had his say, the wings of the pres
ent board of control would be clipped
and the educational institutions of the
state would be left to their own
separate boards same as they used to be
and the political grafters lookin' fo1
soft jobs would be compelled to 60
grubbin' for a livin'.
Speakin' of boards, l see the sugges.
tion is made that the state board Of
pardons should be abolished. If there
was anythin' better to take it's place
I'd hold up both hands. But what can
be done for betterin' things? The old
way of havin' the governor hav the
whole say was vile and Objectionable
He could open the prison doors and lei
out all sorts Of criminals on light pre-
texts and it does look like that would
be worse. What ought to be is to for
bid any commutatin' of sentences thai
court and jury hav deliberately given
When a murderer feels the halter
drawin' round his neck for hangin
he promises faithful that if he can only
be changed to life sentence, he'll
never ask for anythin' better but il
amt long after he's let up before his
friends besiege the pardonin' boar6
and out they go like Younger and thu
rest and the law is spit on in contempt
and the people get uneasy at such dis
graceful travesty of justice and the1
they want to pitch the pardonin' boarC
into perdition. never yet could set
why the hangin' process wasn't abou
%bo ooror fo, II a :, :