The Delta independent., 1913-05-16

| hidH Was lneTe IN our state VINO, II ne
cared 10, could not go home Saturday
night with full weeks wages in his
pocket. Our state government was
paying its bills down to and including
the fifth class. The bosses did not
enlarge the payrolls to the point
where every man who had hung a
picture of a successful candidate in
his front window during the campaign
was given a job, with his daughter
for stenographer and his son for pri-
vate secretary.
Yes, there have been changes in the
government history of Colorado. The
fo-called reformer with his expensive
Ideas has swept the conservative
Atandpatter from the face of our COM
monwealth, we suppose, forever But,
in the completion of that act he swept
from cur midst the capitalist and the
laborer-the developer of our resourc-
es and the grade builder. The min
ing prospector and the agricultural
home-seeker. In fact, this reformer.
with his burdensome laws, his isms
and bis declarations that all men poss-
essing a dollar are thieves and liars,
has placed US where we face financial
embarrassment and state dishnor.
Citizens, no one wants to return to
the day when candidates for all part
les were named in one room OF one
building in the state. Neither does
anyone desire to return to the time
when governors controlled the police
and fire departments of cities and
when men could purchase with priv
ate funds, seats in our national cong
ress. However. just as vigorously as
we forever stamped those evils from
our midst shauld we stamp out the
present day evils that have grown up
in their stead.
The sentiment that compels the
labolishment Of a boss-coLtrolled con-
venuou can stop the use OF state mon
ey TO purchase a seat in the United
States senate.
The sentiment that gave US more
direct selection of our officials can
compel those officials to spend more
of the public money on our education
al institutions and less on political
job-holders.
The sentiment that forced the cor
porations out of politics can now COM
pei the agitating reformer to stop his
llproposed enactment of law which ben
efits no one and which has driven
capital and labor both from our doors.
Yes. we have reformed, but we
must now reform backwards. We
skidded past the conservative road
bed of progress into the swamp of
impractical theories.
AS between government by the ma
chine controlled standpat:er and the
4 1unprincipled agitator. the former is
more preferable. AS a rule he is so
situated financially that he does not
have to rob the state institutions o.,
tnc money they need in order TO keep
neither does he have to place such a
burden of taxation on those indus
I tries already established. that it is
p. chibitive of others coming, in order
"a maintain his political machine
I III, ough useless positions.
[ Tut Colorado is not compelled tc
eucure either. The old line stan J.
natter is dead Let's kill the re o-m
agitator. Throughout this state from
one end to the other are men and
women who are the bone and sinew
of our commonwealth. People who
have made success out of trial and
|tribulation in the personal battles of
life People who are not elated over
/ al fabric by the one-man directed cor
porations and who in their hearts de-
spise and loathe the self-appointed
critics of our men of wealth, who
made money out of a word-picture lie
of beast of political burden and a
pen-sketch falsehood of a jungle of po-
litical intrigues that never existed.
These people are the people who
must assume control of our state gov
ernment: who must say that, thou
shalt not enact reform laws that will
depopulate our state and stunt our in
dustries. Thou shalt not use two mil.
lion of our three million dollar income
for useless payrolls while our boys
and girls stand outside our state in
stitutions of letrning, watching the
tumble-weed and the coyote propa-
gate inside. Who shall say TO both
reformer and standpatter, this state
government is for us and our child
Een, to be used for our social, com.