The weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Craig County, Okla.) 1905-1913, 1910-10-28

Watonga, Okla, Oct q. - Former
Governor Thomas B. Ferguson, who
was such an ardent insurgent before
the famous republican committee
meeting in Guthrie in January and
who during that convention was so
magically metamorphosed by the man
ipulation of State Chairman Harris, ap-
pears to be regaining consciousness
since his unexpected Knockout in the
primary of August 2. In recent edi-
torial he declared himself a progress
sive but not an insurgent and by that
act aligned himself with the policies
that Governor Stubbs is advocating in
Kansas.
His new policy is set out in these
words: "A progressive republican be-
lieyes in adjusting legislation to meet
the demands of the times and keeping
public affairs out from under corpora
ton control An insurgent republican
believes in stirring up strife within
the party and furnishing ammunition
to the democrats"
This new idea of the former COVER
nor's was sprung about the time Theo-
dore Roosevelt did the double-somer-
sault act at Saratoga and made him
self, in the eyes of many thinkers of
the nation, one of the most inconsist-
ent of individuals. But it is paradox
that Ferguson should have come out
simultaneously with Roosevelt with
such a marked avowal of his political
stand as regards national issues, for
Ferguson has never wasted any love-
sweetness on the desert air that sur
rounded the Roosevelt oasis. Roose-
welt in the height of his Rough Rider
glory named Frank Frantz, Rough
Rider captain, as Ferguson's success
sor, against the will of Dennis Flynn
and other republican leaders who
reigned in Oklahoma in those days.
LaFoIIette Scared.
Ferguson springs another novel idea
that is more humorous than logical.
For years the writer sympathized
with Senator LaFollette in his Wis
consin fight. He was right. 1t was
fight against corporation domination
in that state. But in the senate of the
United States LaFollette has become
an extremist and has fought the party
to which he belongs when there was
no clearly defined principles involved.
This has been. the trouble with the in
surgents. The progressives are not all
insurgents. The progressives want to
do things in the party, while the in
surgents want to do things by joining
with the democrats"
The former governors new idea
places him at disadvantage if he ex-
poets to align himself with the other
great progressives of the nation In
surgency has been defined by Sena-
tor Beveridge as that well-defined
for the people, against the wrong and
the dishonest corporations. Senator
.Cummins frequently has said that he
delights in being called an insurgent.
From those further up" the word
has been passed down for all railroad
employees to line up to man for Joe
McNeal. Men in the offices, in the
Pullman coach and on the hand car,
have heard it.
It's the straight R. R. tip from the
paddock. Get right or else.
Not content with thus attempting to
bondage the citizenship of it's en-
ployees, the railroads have gone one
step further, and have made their of
fees in some instances, distributing
places for McNeal campaign literature.
One specific instance Of this char
acter has been pointed out
Two gentlemen, one a. travelling
salesman, the other prominent in state
affairs, stepped up to a railway sta
tion at a small town in old Indian ter
ritory part Of the state, Friday, to pur-
chase tickets. Together with the
tickets, the obliging agent smilingly
handed out some of McNeal's cam
paign literature, with some fatherly ad-
vice about protecting the interests of
the working man.
Rumors of this nature have been cir
culating for days, but the story was
not given credence until these gentle
men related it,
Joe McNeal is surely receiving his
reward. His old friends are with him.
And these same friends are attempting
to influence the vote of thousands of
men in their service, because corpora
tions believe men can be bought with
a word.
They can't succeed in their effort.
Their nlanS are hound to stray Mon