The daily sentinel., 1912-11-02
ELIAS M. AMMONS THE MAN"
BY ELLIS MEREDITH

|OLORADO is fortunate in her
gubernatorial nominees. There
is no need for elimination or
recrimination. The voter should
look over the records of the candi-
dates asking for their suffrage. and
decide between them simply and sole
ly by what they have done and what
they have tried to do in the past
The list of accomplishments to the
credit of Elias NJ. Ammons is so long
that it leaves no room for words of
praise if the plain story itself is to
be told. He has never played to the
salleries-he has always worked for
the state.
He has grown up in this state; he
went to the old Arapahoe school, he
worked his way always and he made
good in whatever place he was found.
He was elected to the Sth general as
sembly in 1891, and reelected two
years later and made speaker of the
house. That body was so close-32
TO 33-that il would have been easy
to defeat him had his colleagues de-
sired to do SO. He was reelected to
the speakership of the extra session
that year without a dissenting vote.
To the women the most important
act of the session of SO was the sub
mission of the equal suffrage refer
endum, and this was accomplished
mainly through the personal efforts
of Speaker Ammons. He used all the
power he possessed and made n per-
sonal fight for it on the floor of the
house at the critical moment.
His most important measure for
the state in general was the fee and
salary bill, which reduced the eX-
penses of the various counties of the
state very greatly and has saved the
state millions of dollars since its
passage. At the time the county
clerk averaged about $4,000 year
in Denver; other officers according
ly. At the same time the cost oil
recording a deed was reduced from
Sl.25 to 25 cents. Always as leg
islator Mr.. Ammons stood for econ
omy as opposed TO the wastetul sys-
TEN that picks the public pocket Tor
the benefit of politicians, and for
generous appropriations for state in
stitutions, especially those of an ed
ucational or remedial character. He
is practical man, who understands
thoroughly the value of dollar,
and knows that whatever is wasted
in the administration of public al
fairs is generally taken from those
who can least afford to lose it.
He brought about some important
political reforms, notably the adop--
ton of the Australian ballot, and
later the removal of the emblems
from it; it was he also who got the
law on our statutes establishing the
S-hour day for municipalities ana
the Saturday half-holiday. He also
advocated the removal of the time
limit for sessions of the legislature
and the fixed salary instead OF the
per diem. This amendment has been
adopted since
The laws exempting wages under
certain amount from Garnishee'
tlXing widows allowances, allowing
80 days grace on chattel mortgages,
compelling the support of families
and prohibiting the employment OF
boys under Is on railways, and the
Two acts creating the state board OF
CHARITIES and corrections ana the
BOARD of pardons show his broad hu-
man sympathy. There are othef
laws concerning education and the
schools and Libraries, introduced Dy
MN, or passed largely through MS
efforts. and others concerning reve-
hues and taxation that he did much
TO frame and enact. He has had the