The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-02-11
"MORT" ALBAUGH
BY WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE

This community will hear with sad
ness the news of the death of Morton
Albaugh. For two years he lived
here and was receiver of the defunct
First National bank. He made many
friends here in that time who have
been loyal to him and to whom he,
in turn has been. devoted. For the
one dominant thing in Mr.. Albaugh's
life was devotion. He was faithful to
the end. His loyalty was personal,
and deep and beautiful to know.
The editor of the Gazette and Mort
AIbaugh have been friends for nearly
thirty years. 1t was in the early
nineties when they first met. Al
baugh was editing county seat news
paper in county seat fight out in
western Kansas, and the writer was
reporter on the Kansas City Journal,
sent down to get story OF the up
heaval. Memory of the upheaval has
passed. but the memory of thin,
keen-eyed razor-faced, slightly
stopped youth, full of energy, ire
mendously in earnest, and giving the
impression of hound upon the scent,
still fingers. He was Mort Albaugh.
year or two later he showed up in
the Republican state convention lead
ing his county delegation, and in a
year after that he appeared in state
politics a leader, appointed by Gov
ernor Morrill, as a member of the
state board of charities.
three years ago-Mort Albaugh has
been a leader in Republican politics
in this state. 1t has been fifteen years
since he and the writer of these lines
have agreed on factional questions
Yet at least once year. and often
many times, they have met upon terms
of closest intimacy and finest friend
ship For he was a most interesting
man, this Mort Albaugh. His. judg-
ments of men were sure. He was alb
solutely honest. He was on the money
side of every proposition that has
come up in the state, yet no hint that
a penny of dirty money ever passed
thru his hands ever was made. He
always paid his own way in politics.
He was charitable to a fault He
never spoke bitterly, nor did he seem
to carry grudges. The days work in
politics ended with the day for him.
He had an accurate and dependable
mind for details, and he worked Tor
others in politics rather for himself
His politics was more or less per-
sonal, somewhat bounded by his pas
sion for loyalty, yet he believed what
he believed with all the ardor of his
nature. He believed in the existing
order. He never scorned reformers.
for he was not a scorner; but he mad
a low opinion of reforms He be-
lieved that this is a pretty good world.
and when anyone desired to change
anything. he had to prove conclusively
to Albaugh that it could be changed.
that 1t neeQeO cnanSe, anu LIdL ne
wasn't merely playing for votes in
talking sentiment. Yet he was man
of much sentiment. He was intensely
patriotic. They put him at the mead
of the Shawnee County Red Cross
campaign, last December, with in
structions to raise $4,000. He threw
himself into the task with the ardor
of crusader, and raised $25,OoO.
Every talent he had, every emotion
in his heart was energized in that
campaign.
He took up the candidacy of Henry
Allen with the same fervor, and with
exactly the same conviction. He want
ed Kansas to have a war governor
who would sound patriotic note
across the world, if the crisis arose
where such a note was needed.
We were all sitting in bedroom
two weeks ago, on chairs and tables
and the bed, in windows and on trunks,
politician-wise. There was Aibaugh,
Smith, and Ralph Harris and H. H.
Motter, and the writer hereof-former
Bull Moosers and old standpatters,
when Mort lifted his voice to say:
Now boys-when he was in earnest
he had used that phrase for thirty
years. Now boys. you know what 1
think about Henry's nonsense about re-
organizing county government. 1 just
think it is crazy. And Bill here, he
thinks it is gospel And we don't
agree on anything else much, but on
this war. 1 am willing to waive my
feeling about that county government
rubbish to get a governor who will
stand hitched on the war, and sound
note all over the country when they
try to push US into an unjust peace,
and you mustn't forget a year ago we
were talking about peace without VIC
tory, and we may be singing the same
tune this time next year. This is no
time to split hairs and get patriotic
men divided. Bill here knows YOU
can't get anywhere with a reform pro-