The Idaho scimitar. [volume] (Boise, Idaho) 1907-1908, 1908-09-12
Some Sane Suggestions.

A gentleman in Kansas writes to Golfers so in
diligently and so pertinently that he is worth re-
peating:
| am enclosing you a couple of clippings, which
indicate the drift in Kansas. Here isa word to ali
of you about the senatorial situation IN the west
The west is thoroughly in sympathy with what
might be called the Roosevelt policies" And the
west means to go it alone to get them wherever
Roosevelt or Taft may stop. My reason for OPP
posing Roosevelt for third term that the peo-
pie who believe in the Roosevelt things might have
exactly the issues they now having: To cut
loose from guiding strings and work out their own
political salvation | think it is infinitely better for
the people to do this for themselves, they are
doing it now, than for them to have it done for
them | believe it much more important that the
people should elect their men, as they have IN
the case of Bristow and they will in the case Of
Cummins and Folk, and perhaps Foss, than to have
Roosevelt do it for them. In short, | believe 1t IS
better for this government for the people to boss the
senate in the interest of of good government than for
Roosevelt to boss the senate in the interest of good
government. You know to defeat Long out here, we
had to buck both Taft and Roosevelt, and we did it.
having unbounded faith in Taft and unbounded adj
miration for Roosevelt.
Conditions in Kansas Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska,
and the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, and
possibly Michigan are exactly the same. The east
calls this radicalism | don't know what is but
certainly is a sort of declaration of independence
from the domination of Aldrch and Cannon and the
machine The primary law, which operates now
pretty generally through Mississippi valley gives us
the weapon we need and we'll not be slow to it.
Another writer in Golfers, not of its editors,
but common citizen of the dignihed city of Boston,
wants to know what the we'll meaning Mr. Taft
could do with Mr. Cannon sitting on the house and
extending his long of power into the senate,
resting his thumb on the president of the senate
Mr.. Sherman-the man he NADER? This writer,
though republican, believes he would rather risk
Mr.. Bryan for president with republican congress,
in preference to wholly Cannon government"
The revolt iii the west is so much a Cannon
and Aldrich revolt than revolt that covers all of
repubcanism that the western insurgent cannot feel
that there is safety in adding to the CannonAldrich
legislative autocracy the strength of a Sherman
throned as presiding officer of the senate.
Much has been said and written about the inability
Mr. Bryan to direct the destines of the republic
with a republican congress to deal with, but he
would be a more potent instrument of reform than
Mr. Taft in the coils of the Cannon ShermanAldrich
octopus. With Mr. Bryans election would come to
the senate presiding officer who could not be used
to carry the old conspiracy against the common
good.
The Kansas writer testihes that Long would have
been impossible had Roosevelt and Taft prevailed
and it is clear enough that Roosevelt and Taft are
opposed to Cummins and Folk that they are antag-
onistc LaFollette in Wisconsin and that they were
on the side of Kittredge, the defeated corporation
boss in South Dakota
There many inconsistencies in the course of
Roosevelt and Taft and not the least of them is
their hide bound support of the corporation machine
in Idaho, with its trust boosting Hepburn
The west has an ideal and will attain it. But it
must first separate itself from all impeding alliances