Evening star., 1939-01-22
Capper Has Survived
Blasts Of Kansas
Political Winds
Veteran Senator Looks
For Hard Blow in
Farm Deliberations


KANSAS CITY, Jan. 21.-The
spare figure of United States Senator
Arthur Capper of Kansas bellies at
73 the fact that it las carried him
through Is years of political
tornadoes.
Senator Capper, a Quaker, tee
totaler, Republican,. farm publisher
and lover of the dance, has survived
the blasts which have wrecked many
a promising political career on the
prairies of his State because he
always seemed to have an uncanny
way Of figuring out in advance which
way the winds were blowing.
The latest move of this political
weather vane has been to swing
away from the New Deal farm pro-
gram which raises the as yet un-
answered question:.
Is tornado on the way?
Speaks With Trepidation.
One speaks of tornadoes with
trepidation in Kansas. John Steuart
Curry, a Dunavant, Kans, farm boy
who became a famous artist, once
painted a picture of a Kansas
tornado. He almost was blown
through the thumb hole of his
palette by the protests.
The righteous indignation of the
ploWmen critics was something akin
to that which gripped poke -bonneted
Carry Nation that day in 1899 when
she entered the bar of the old Hotel
Carey in Wichita, Kans., walked
across the onyx and marble floor
and swept her gaze from the shiny
brass spittoons to wall picture of
cleopatra at the Bath"
Saloon-Wrecking Garry thought
The nude figure of Cleopatra brutally
frank. Curry critics thought The
Tornado frankly brutal.
But political tornadoes do sweep
frequently over the Kansas wheat
fields, which typify both the State
and state of mind. making all the
more remarkable Senator Capper's
achievement.
Knows His Politics.
There is little fanfare about the
man. and what he does is apt to 90
unnotlced for a while. But he knows
MS politics SO well he hasn't been
hcked once since 1914 in a State
Where capricious winds turn things
SO topsy turvy they keep men like
William Allen White of Emporia
. working overtime at their type-
writer's.
How those winds can howl.
In 1912 a Democrat beat Senator
Capper for Governor by Just 35
votes. In 1914 Senator Capper beat
the same man.
In 1916 Kansas voted Senator
Capper to his second term as Gov
ernor-and Democratic Woodrow
Wilson to his second term as Presi-
dent.
In 1880 Kansas chose Harry
Woodrlng, now Secretary of War,
as its fourth Democratic Governor
IN hlstory-and sent Senator Capper
back for his third term in the
Senate, Two years later, the winds
blew Gov Woodring out of the
State Capitol.
In 1886 Kansas turned its back
on budget-balancing ALI M. Landon,
who made the State famous during
two terms as Governor, refusing
him its electoral vote for President.
The State not only went for Frank
lin D. Roosevelt but put another
Democrat in the State House as
Gov. Landon's successor. But it
blthely went right on sending
Senator Capper back to Washing
ton.
Has Cross Winds, Too.
Kansas has its cross winds. too.
A popullst movement won a SEN
atorship in 1892, the year Senator
Capper as Washington correspond
ent for the New York Tribune
looked down from the press gallery
on the Senate where he started
becoming fixture in 1918. In
1880 a goat gland doctor almost
crossed up both major parties in
the race for Governor. In 1888
a brief furry was caused by a
preacher with senatorial ambitions
who drew accusations of being pro-
Nazi and heatedly denied them.
That's Kansas.
They say in the State that SEN
ator Capper keeps his ear so close
to the ground that, right in the
middle of roaring wind, he can
hear the wheat growing. That may
add significance to the fact the
terpslchorean Senator, a member of
the Senate Agriculture Committee,
has changed his views recently on
farm legislation.
He did it at a most critical mo-
ment-near the close of the 1898
election campaign which ended in
gain of Republican congressional
seats throughout the country.
After the election, which saw an
other political tornado blow
Democratic Governor and United
States Senator out of Office in Kan
sas, Senator Capper called a con-
ference of farmers in Topeka.
He wanted to know what the farm
ers had to say before he left for
Washington so he invited them to
"a free-for-all." 1t was that.
When the meeting was over. much
was written about the divergence
~ Of opinion. There seemed to be as
many suggestions as there were
farmers. But the keen-eared Sena-
tor Capper had listened. He went
back to the present session of Con-
gress little more conservative than
when he last came away.
Farm Act Too Complicated.
THE present farm propram has
not worked satisfactorily" he said
THE present Farm Act is too COM
plicated. There are parts of the
A. A. A. which should be retained.
There are parts of it which should
be abandoned. I expect to take an
active part in working out the new
program as member of the Sem
ate Committee on Agriculture"
He said the country wanted new
farm hill that II NO g ,o,;,,c+ .jj,