Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1917-02-01

phecy. After TWO hours Lne alatm [
goes off with metallic burr. 1t is the
signal for him to stop, though he has
no intention of doing so.
"Go on, go on y roars the audience,
and there they remain, dissolving in
mutual Precipitation, for another hour
or so of it, A regular Jonathan Ed
wards of politics-is this LaFollette.
And the wonder of LaFollette is the
people who listen to him and elect him
again and again.
Wisconsin is the least partisan, the
most fearless-thinking of the states
and its most important contribution to
the nation is its wrought political
and educational pioneering and expert
mentation. Carl Schurz, fresh from
the German revolution of as, was one
Of it's earliest leaders, and trustee of
its university John Bascom. the NOR
tai philosopher, when president of that
university, trained whole generation
Of fearless political athletes, LaFollette
among them. Professor Ely lit the
light Of independent thought in hun
dreds Of young minds; later there have
been President Van Hse, Professor
Ross, Professor Commons, Professor
Rainsch. now ambassador to China,
and many others all sturdy thinkers.
No representatives at Washington have
been more stubbornly independent than
those from Wisconsin. It was no acct
dent that Wisconsin sent the first So
cialist to Congress, and elected the
first Socialist administration to a large
city
With it all, Wisconsin is not a rad
zeal state; it is too tough-minded, too
practical 1t wants to go ahead, but
to 20 ahead solidy and cautiously
Other states may go wild with reform
/ legislation but not Wisconsin. Wis
consin wants to be certain that all it's
political reforms are buckied down to
real educational and economic ends
Thus, while no state has gone so far as
Wisconsin in the voluntary application
of cooperation to daily affairs, the
state has not adopted the initiative,
the referendum or recall; while its tax
alton system is probably the best in
America, it voted down woman suf-
frage; and with the most advanced
laws for state insurance and the con-
troll of railroads, banks and corpora
tions, every effort thus far TO secure
even county option in the control OF
the liquor traffic has Been defeated,
And il has the smallest per capita
state debt Of any northern state, and
bonded Indebtedness whatever.
Like most of America, however,
Wisconsin is far more interested in
politics, economics and educational
the practical application of these
| sciences than in art or religion or lit
erature, or, indeed, In any of the finer
aspects of the great art of life. One
can hear as good music in Milwaukee
as anywhere in America; but it is Ger
man music or Italian music. OF the
creative impulse in music there is little
or nothing. OF art, nothing, Of liter
ature, especially the higher forms OF
literature, almost nothing. In religion,
while the old forms and traditions re-
main, much of that enthusiasm which
in other times and other places has
made religion glowing force, has
here gone into a passionate devotion to
social reform, politics, socialism. edu-
cation.
Nor is it surprising in such person
atty as that of Wisconsin, to find a
deep vein of sentiment. which, if il
sometimes reaches perilously near tc
sentimentalty, is nevertheless the gen
uine expression Of an essentially sim
Pile and sincere character. The author
Of Silver Threads Among the Gold
was of Wisconsin and so were the au-
thors of "In the Sweet Bye and Bye
and "a Perfect Day"