Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1906-10-30
WELLINGTON
ON STRYK.
ER'SPAST
RECORD OF PERFORMER" IN
HIS OLD HOME
FOUGHT The DEMOCRATS
Once Bemeaned and Viciously At
tackled Party He Now Assumes to
Lead to Victory

W, ...' Kas., Oct. 20.-The
people Of Southern Kansas are deeply
interested in the contest for delegate
to the constitutional convention now
being waged in the district of which
the city of Tulsa, 1T. is the major
part. That interest is due to the fact
that an old Kansan and former cih,
zen of Pittsburg, W. J. Gregg, is the
Republican candidate, Mr. Gregg can
count scores Of Democratic friends
throughout Kansas who, while they
may differ with him politically, would
give him their votes were they resi-
dents of Tulsa.
The interest manifested in this c0l-
test in Kansas for Mr.. Gregg is due
solely to the character of opposition
to him in that city. In Kansas it
would be a testimonial of good char
acter to any candidate to have the OPP
position of William Stryker, whose
record is so well known here, where
for several years he conducted one of
the vilest and most vituperative sheets
ever published in the state. Few of
the public spirited men Of Wellington
and Winfield escaped vicious and SLAM
derous attacks from this professed re-
former. His hand was against every
decent and self-respecting citizen who
refused to be bled by him. And his
vicious attacks upon Mr.. Gregg now
are inspired by the same motives.
Certainly no self-respecting Demo-
crat will follow the lead and vote for
a candidate who is under the domina-
ton of Stryker. Generally it is a
good rule for voters to stay with their
party, but when such pretended re-
formers as this man Stryker assumes
to champion a man or party, 1t is
evident that that man of that party
does not deserve the support Of intelli-
gent, honest and conscientious voters.
BY accident the Populist wave
which swept Kansas in 1896 brought
to the surface this man Stryker as
State Superintendent of Public In
struction, Nobody had ever heard of
him. He had not been identified with
the educational work of the state. He
had been elevated to a public office
which had been filled by such men as
George w, Winans, II. c, Speer, Allen
b. Lennon and men of that high char.
acter. His election was a great humil.
iation to the state, and for two years
Kansas, the great educational com.
monwealth was in sack cloth and
ashes.
1t happened that the Legislature
which came in with the 1897 Populist
administration enacted the state uni.
formity school textbook law, which
imposed upon Governor Ieedy the
duty to appoint a text book commits
sion. Stupid as Stryker was in the
educational work Of his Office, he saw
here a chance to get in his work. Day
after day he labored with Governor
Leedy to get him to name commits
sion to his (Stryker's) liking. He in
sisted that the governor should per
NIT him to name the eight members
and this insstence was so pressing
that Governor Leedy finally told hin
he would find plenty to do in his owl
department if he would attend to il
duties
Gov. Ieedy and the people Of Kan
sas did not then understand VIII,
Stryker was interested so deeply il
the appointment of the text book com
mission of his selection, but It dawne,
upon them later when the commission
was convened. Then it was that Mr.
Stryker let the cat out Of the bag. |
developed that he wanted a certain
manuscript for a civil governmental
manuscript for a Civil Governmental
arithmetic and other text adopted il
the face of charges that hG was DC