The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1915-07-03
The Interested Observer

for the governorship. The governor
will probably be here in September to
tell the people of Stevens county why
he would rather be governor than U.
S. senator.
"Full many a shaft at random sent
finds mark the archer little meant"
was thinking how apropo the above
quotation was, in connection with the
position taken by Congressman Hum
phrey on his vote against the shipping
bill. The dear people have had their
eyes opened to the fact that this coun-
try is running a large department store
with the world as its customers; that
we have the goods, but we have no
delivery wagon. No doubt Mr.. Hum
phrey and others in Congress who voted
against the bill opined that by a policy
of tearing down, they could go before
the people and saddle the result upon
the present tariff law enacted by the
democrats. AS the coon said, "mebbe
so, mebbe not" 1t now appears that the
insiduous lobby against the shipping bill
has wrecked our chances of selling our
own goods in our own ships, and in the
lack of other ships in selling lots of our
products. The more l hear of this
matter, the more it appears the people
are convinced that the presidents
position was far-sighted and right.
That "there seems to be no intelli-
gence or moral force left in the repub-
lican leadership of the state of Wash
ington" is the opinion expressed in the
current issue of the Outlook, the
famous weekly to which Theodore
Roosevelt used to be a contributing
editor, by Frederick M. Davenport,
widely known political writer who Wis
tied Washington during the recent ses-
sion of the Legislature.
Mr.. Davenport's opinion is contained
in the seventh article of a series which
he is contributing to the Outlook on
"The Persistence of the Pioneer Con-
SCIENCE" and contains, among other
things, strong tribute to the present
chief executive of Washington, Ernest
Lister.
AS an apparently entirely disinter-
ested commentary on Washington poll
tics, what Mr.. Davenport says regard
ing Governor Lister and the late legis-
lature is particularly interesting. He
says:
"Since 1912 Washington has been
seeing red-a condition of mental fer
ment not conducive to rational prog
ress. The present executive Is a fine
young democrat named Ernest Lister,
whose annual message disclosed pro-
found, and as it turned out, we'll
grounded lack of confidence in the pro-
spective good will or good intention or
capacity of the republican legislature,
and alarm at the increased cost and
complexity of government. In the ses-
sion of 1918 the standpatters and the
democratic minority together secured
control. This year the republican
standpatters were in control, the vot-
ing last fall for the Legislature evidence
ing a somewhat muddle-headed purpose
to beat the democrats. The result,
as in Kansas under similar circum-
stances, is an incompetent as we'll as
ultra-conservative body. which has pro-
duced upon the public mind of the
state the most profound sense of legis-
lative incapacity in the recollection OF
the Oldest inhabitant. There seems to
be no intelligence or moral force left in
the republican leadership of the state"
IL the Barnes Roosevelt trial accom-
plished northing more than the coinage
of a new word, that in itself should
commend it to posterity. The catch
phrase, invisible government" in a
manner fascinates me. My thoughts
Immediately take the most wonderful
fights of imagination, and | wander
into labyrinth of conjecture and sup
position as to how far it extends, what
are its limitations, is it local or gen.
eral, does the law of interstate com.
merce have any bearing, is it confined
to New York state, or, perish the
thought, could there be such thing as
invisible government in Stevens county?
The possibilities loom big when l stop
to consider events of past and present.
in and out of politics and court and
business patronage. But I'll have to
leave it up to you, while l go into
st. Clair's and get him to fix me up a
German submarine.