The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-10-09
BY HARRY ROOT.

( Your correspondent attended the
first Populist rally in Osborne county
at Bull City (now Atom. w. A.
PETER was there and this was several
months before he was elected United
states senator. Another man named
with him. The Populists were organ
lied at the time, and the leaders
| claimed that there would be no poll
tics in their organization. County
alliances were being organized in most
counties in northwest Kansas, and
sub-alliances were springing up at
every cross road. This meeting had
i been advertised as q big county rally.
The people Joined the parade in droves
and fell in line On the main travelled
road leading to town. Buggies and
| two-seated vehicles were scarce then,
| SO the husband and wife sitting on the
/ front seat, and the children in the box,
and every wagon full of humanity, and
the painted banners floating telling
| the name of this and that alliance, it
| took the paraders about three hours
| to pass thru the town. The Populist
| leaders had convinced the mayor of
the town and the council that there
wasn't any politics in the first Populist
rally, and they headed the parade as it
passed thru. They were all Repub-
licans. The parade looked more like q
circus parade than a political one, and
! from this time on the great Populist
upheaval spread all thru the north
west Kansas counties as rapidly as a
prairie fire would. After this meeting
organization was the watchworG. No
one could get into their meetings with
out the grips, signs and passwords.
In the first election in Osborne and
other counties where the organization
had been effected, the Popuiists swept
the plate clean in all the county Of
fees. The mayor and council of that
town felt Inundated because they
headed political parade which swept
the Republicans out of office in the
first election. The organization kept
on growing until 1t WAS strong enough
to send Populist to congress from
the Sixth district, and reelected him
for a second and third time, besides
beat ingalls, for the United States
senate with W. A. PETER.
F. D. Turck comes all the way from
Los Angeles to attend the supreme
court, as he is interested in case
from Graham county. He located in
that county in the early eighties, and
farmed and practiced law. He wit
messed much of the early trials and
tribulations of pioneer times in north
west Kansas, and during his residence
in Graham county his home has
been in Hill City. For the last year he
has been living in Los Angeles. Asked
III he had quit northwest Kansas for
good his answer was: II like Hill City
and Graham county and her people. I
own my own real estate there, and
will be back again for keeps"
One Of the Iiveliest and exciting
judicial conventions was held in the
seventeenth district, in kirwin. Au-
gust IL annd is, 1880. It was the
time when the district had ten coun-
ties, now there are only five. There
were three candidates, Clark A. Smith.
of Mitchell county; C. Angevine, of
Jewell. and A. Saxey, of Osborne. The
delegates were nearly evenly divided.
A number of politicians were present,
and between the ballots oratory was
plentiful. It took two full days to-
nominate a Republican candidate for
Judge. Forty-two ballots were taken,
Smith winning the nomination on the
last ballot. Graham county had two
colored mef on the delegation. and they
were as stubborn as the-white dele
gates. They xoted on every ballot, di-I
vided, and they never changed their
votes. Some of the white delegates
Topped here and there, but the col
ored delegates never changed. Ange-
vine is living in Kansas City. Kan.
Smith lives in Cawker City, and Saxey
died in Provo, Utah, few years ago.
Writing about county seat contests
in Sixth district counties, your corre-
spondent came close to seeing one in
shack of a building in which the coun-
ty officers housed on the ground
floor for several years, while court
was held in the second story. 1t was
a rickety building and unfit for the
purposes for which it was used. The
surprise is that it didn't tumble down
long before It was torn away. In the
Silly hours of night, when the Beloit
people were at home, and not know
ing what was going on, Glen Elder
people were awake and working with
all their might to open the county seat
contest, and they were literally sub
scribing to a court house fund If their
town could get the county seat. Soon
as Beloit people caught on to what
the Glen Elder people were doing, and
the financial proposition they were
going to offer, this started the COM
motion, and it didn't let up until the
Beloitites had won the victory. From
that time on her people didn't let up
until the new magnificent court house
was completed, and a large celebration
was held. It was one of the largest
ever held in that town. people turning
out from every portion of the county
Not a dollar in bonds was voted. the
commissioners levying a tax ana the
court house was built and not tax
payer felt it. Glen Elder people were
not censured for taking up the propo-
sition, they simply got disguised with
the shack of a building pointed to as
Mitchell county's court house. Now
the people from the entire county as
well as visitors can point to 1t with
pride.
w. L. sayers. of Hill City. is a To-
neka visitor and attending to law mat
tiers before the supreme court. He is
one of the bright colored attorneys OF
the state, and is a frequent visitor on
business from the sixth district be-
fore this court. The Sayers are pio-
neey. residents of Graham county. who
located in Nicodemus township in that
county. where the original colored col
ony located He reports his county
enjoying greater prosperity than ever
before in its history. AS regards crops
of all kinds. they are the best ana
largest Yields than ever before. he
says.
The fact that Judge Charles ]: