The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1908-05-28

'Bob' Evans fleet a short time ago on
its voyage from Hampton Roads
around the world was an interesting
occasion, to me particularly so, as forty
seven years ago the Goth of last month
| started into the active service of the
war at Hampton Roads and it seemed
queer to meet that great fleet, that was
born of the war and the fight between
the Monitor and the Merrimac at
Hampton Roads forty six years ago.
away out here OH such journey
From the reports of the newspapers
you must be having characteristic
political fight in our good old home
state. God bless her and keep her from
harm! This time it seems to be within
theparty. Twelve years ago wrote
a prominent south Dakota statesman
in Washington that | thought congress
should pass law vesting in the inter-
state commerce commission the power
to regulate the charges on Interstate
railroads, and he agreed with me that
it should be done, aud added that the
railroads of South Dakota would dam
age the party if they did not 'let up"
/ Whatever there is in the present con
test it seems to have proA Ell him true
prophet. Only yesterday [ ran onto
his letter in looking over my old CORE
! spondence, and it recalled the days of
the last territorial legislature when
! Harry Hunter was donrkeeper of the
farmers" caucus of the House as a
'reformero and that in 1898 he was one
of the most vigorous and successful op-
posers of a double damage hill, and a
prairie fire bill which / introduced in
the state senate to curb the railroads
and 1 secured. the approval of that
body for despite the hostile report of
the railroads committee as some OF
the boys called it, by a vote of twenty
three to fourteen only to be repudiated
later when it came up for passage, by
a vote of thirty one to eleven.
| This senate was composed largely of
| farmers | think, and honest men. Its
final attitude may have been through
i inspiration. of the Biblical injunction
"The wise man changes; the fool new
| er." One eof the members was said te
have received thirty or more passes te
] send home to his constituents that they
might come over to Pierre to see wha
great influence he had with the rail
roads. | do not mean to say that my
good friend Harry Hunter was mem
ber of either the senate or house o
1898. IF remember correctly he wa
a member Of the Third House, and :
good one too. This experience tool
the wind out of my sail as reformer.
see my genial and talented frient
Colonel Parker is dropped by the re
formers as candidate and Mr.. Glas
of Watertown taken up, and I ana glao
to hear that the Colonel voted to pu
lumber on the free list, where it shoul,
always have been, and where, my rec
objection Is, the platform adopted at th
state convention in 1906 declared j
should be put. think we made
mistake in 1888 when we declared fo
the protection, substantially, of every
thing in the way of an Industrial out
put into which labor entered. w
have had great prosperity under thi
policy, too much perhaps; kind c
hot bed system that encourages tht
consumption of all the products of ou
forests and mines by the generation
now living and will leave those VIII
come after to condemn our prodigality
Now think the time has come for th
products of the farm, the forest and tn
mine to come in free, and the readjust
ment of our tariff SO as TO protect onl
the product of our manufacturers t
the extent that their labor costs NOR