The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-09-09

Mrs. Ella S. Burton; Olathe, Sept. IL;
Paola, Sept. II (afternoon): LaCygne, |
Sept. II (evening); Fort Scott. Sept IA;
Girard, Sept. Is; Pittsburg, Sept. 16;
Columbus, Sept. Z; Oswego, Sept IS;
Parsons, Sept. 10.
State Auditor James Nation advises
the voters of Kansas to defeat the Dro-
posed constitutional amendment |
which if adopted, would make it |
necessary to hold a special session of !
the legislature He says the amend
ment is or no use, anyway, and the /
easiest way out of the muddie is 20 |
beat the amendment.
Il am opposed to the amendment"
said Auditor Nation, land believe the
people Will defeat it if they under
stand its object. The amendment pro-
poses to do just two things: Put pro-
pate judges on a salary instead of
permitting them to accept fees. and to
enable district judges to run for other
ofhces while they are on the bench.
SO lar as probate judges are concern
ed, there is no particular advantage in
changing them from fees to a straight
salary. If the fees are too high now
let the legislature reduce them. 1t is
easy to fix the fees so that they will
about correspond with fixed salary.
THE other provision is simply In
the interests of perhaps a half dozen
district judges in the state, who want
| to run for some other office, but who
don't want to give up the Office they
now hold and take the chances on the
| other. The constitution now provides
| that no district judge shall run for
| another office during the term for
which he was elected judge. This
| seems like a wise provision. 1t tends
1 to discourage a judge from using the
power of his Office to boost him into
| a better job. As rule the district
| judges are high class men, but now
| and then an INSCRIPTIONS politician
| slips onto the bench. and if he were
Inn h he icr11f hi
whip some itigants into supporting
| him for higher hopors. In my opin-
ion it would be a sad blow to the con-
| stitution and the liberties of the people
| to wipe out this safeguard simply 10
satisfy the whims of a half dozen
| aspiring politicians who now happen
to be district judges.
eff the amendment carries, a special
session must be held to enact law
fixing the salaries of probate judges.
1t must come before the probate
judges take their offices next January.
To avoid a special session and also TO
preserve one of the pest PROVISIONS IN
the present constitution I hope the
people will vote down the proposed
| amendment"
. Senator Charles Curtis and his old
! time political friend, Cyrus Leland,
are both in Wichita today. Curtis and
Il Leland are like Damon and Pythias.
They always stand together. How
ever, it is reported from Wichita that
, Mr. Curtis is in Wichita to visit Com
gresham Vic Murdoch for q few days,
while Mr.. Leland is there to look af-
ter a telephone fight in which he Is
| financially interested.
D. o. McCray, one of Cyrus Leland's
managers in the recent primary, writes
| Topeka political gossip for the st
Louis Republic, and hints that the only
/, way to restore HARMONY in the Re
, publican ranks is to bring about the
, defeat Of the party in the coming cleo
, ton. This is one of Mr.. McCray'S re-
cent stories in the Republic:
Senator Charles Curtis is the mex
: victim. Senator Long met his Water
loo in the recent primary and at the
very zenith of his official life must ster
down into the ranks. 1t is a bitter
dose for the Longs.
1.-The senator stood next to Taft
: and in the event of the latter's election
! to the presidency, Long would have
been his right-hand advisor and coun-
selor.
1.-The senator and his family fee
keenly the humiliation of the recent
: defeat His friends have said that he
has discovered that decency, square
dealing and upright conduct in official
demagoguery and the brand Of re
form Bristow represents.
: Long and Curtis measure up in
ability with Ingalls, and Plumb. AS the
|
: Populistic storm, SO Long was swept
, aside by the wave of IaFolletteism
put in motion in Kansas by Stubs five
3 years ago.
t Now, Curtis is next. He has foul
| more years to serve as United States
5 senator. and then, it is planned
Stubs will step from the governors
l Office into 1Curtis's shoes and thu;
I reach the goal of his ambition.
Curtis and his friends realize that
a1o h IL
him to build up a state machine that
2 will be all-powerful. They cite the
r Cummins machine in Iowa as an ex-
! ample. 1t would turn the Republican
5 party of Kansas over to LaFolletteism
t a condition more to be feared by the
e old machine than a Democratic adj
ministration for two years.
The Republican party in Kansas
e will not be purged and united until il
0 is defeated said a Republican today
3 to the correspondent for the Republic
f There is no use of mincing matters
: The best thing that could happen tc
: the Republican party in this state this
year would be a defeat all along the
0 line. We will never get the two FAC
= tions together until this happens. De-
, feat this year will mean the preserva-
= ton of the real Republican party, and
C it will be the salvation of Senator
| Curtis
t This is the feeling expressed by
7 many of the friends and supporters OF
t Long, Curtis and Leland. They argue
, | that in the past when Kansas was car
= ried by the opposition to the Repub-
S lican party it was for only two years
y at a time. and that gave the party
I ample opportunity to reOrganize and
e sift out the demagogues who had
wrecked it. A Democratic state adj
ministration would dispose of w. R
e Stubs as factor and trouble breeder
] and it would stay for a time at least
e the threatened reign of LaFolletteism
r consummations devoutly prayed fol
c by the old machine crowd.
n The defeat of Bristow for United
! States senator. thew argue. would re-