Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1907-06-22

the throne. He must ne out Of view,
putting forward his puppets and
changing them when the people grow
bored or angry with them And the
Pre9ident-in all important matters
he must obey hiS party. which Is. after
ALL simply the interests that finance
it; in unimportant matters. his So
called power Is Whitfield down by the
party's leaders and workers, whose
requirements may not be disregarded
He shakes the plum tree, but he does
ii under orders: others gather the
fruit. and he gets only the exercise
and the honor"
I had no yearning for puppetship,
however exalted the title or sonorous
the fame: but to be the power that
selects the king-puppet Of the political
puppet-hierarchy. to be the power that
selects and rules him,-that was the
logical development of my career.
In Burbank I thought | had found a
man worthy to wear the puppet robes,
one who would glory in them. He.
like most of the other ambitious men
have known, cared little who was be-
hind the throne. provided he himself
was seated upon it, the crown on his
head and the crowds tossing the hats
that shelter their dim-thinking brains.
Also, in addition to magnetism and
ton and as much docility as can be
expected in man big enough to use
for important work.
In September | gave him our party
nomination for governor. In our one
sided state that meant his election.
AS had put him into the governor
ship not so much for use there as for
use thereafter, 1t was necessary to
protect him from my combine, which
had destroyed his two immediate
predecessors by over-use-they had
become so unpopular that their polit-
Protect him I must, though the task
would be neither easy nor pleasant.
II involved collision with my clients
"a square test of strength between
US What was to me far more re-
pellent, it involved my personally TAX
ing hand in that part OF my political
work which I had hitherto left to
Woodruff and his Iieutenants.
One does not in person chase and
catch and kill and dress and serve the
chicken he has for dinner; he orders
chicken, and hears and thinks no more
about 1t until it is served Thus, all
the highly disagreeable part of my
political work was done by others;
Woodruff, admirably capable and most
careful to spare my feelings, received
the demands of my clients from their
lawyers and transmitted them to the
party leaders in the legislature with
the instructions how the machinery
was to be used In making them into
law. AS was financing the machine
Of both parties, his task was not difh-
cult, though delicate
But now that began to look over
Woodruff's legislative programme in
advance, I was amazed at the rapacity
of my clients. rapacious though I
knew them to be. I had been think
ing that the independent newspapers
there were a few such. but OF small
circulation and infiuence-were ma
lignant in their attacks upon my
friends" In fact, as | soon saw, they
had told only small part OF the truth
They had not found out the worst
things that were done; nor had they
- ~ f.To nd
the governor were doing other than
the business of the big corporations,
most OF IL OF doubtful public benefit,
to speak temperately. An hours
study OF the facts and I realized as
never before why we are so rapidly
developing breed of multi-millton-
aires in this country with all the OPP
portunities to wealth in their hands.
had only to remember that the sys-
tenn which ruled my own state was in
full blast in every one of the states
Of the Union. Everywhere. no sooner
do the people open or propose TO open
a new road into source OF wealth,
than men like these clients of mine
hurry to the politicians and buy the
rights to set up toll-gates and to fix
their own schedule Of tolls.
However. the time had now come
when I must assert myself. I made
no radical changes in that first pro
gramme of Burbank's term. con
tented myself with cutting OF the
worst items, these 1t would have
ruined Burbank to indorse. My clients
were soon grumbling, but Woodruff
handled them we'll placating them
with excuses that soothed their an
noyance to Discontinued silence. So
ably did he manage it that not until
Burbanks third year did they begin to
come directly TO me and complain Of
the way they were being thrown
down" at the capitol
Roebuck, knowing me most init.
mately and feeling that he was my
author and protector, was frankly in
sistent. Eve got almost nothing at
the last session" he protested, and