A NEGRO KILLS A KANSAS JOINT
KEEPER
Wamego, Kas., Sept. 14---John McGuire, of Chicago,
recently from Herington, Kas., who has been running the Mystic Isle joint at this place, was shot twice in the
back yesterday by Andy Turner, a negro, and died a few minutes later. Turner escaped.
(Kansas City Star ~ September 16, 1899)
REMINISCENCES OF J. W. BRYAN AND JOHN J. INGALLS
Wamego, Kan., July 26 - The Modern Woodmen of America
in the counties of Waubaunsee and Pottawatomie have an association which every year meets for a "log-rolling."
The membership runs past the hundreds and each year the annual meeting comprises a two days' thousand persons.
This year the log rolling was held at Westmoreland.
A feature of the occasion is a number of addresses
by men prominent in and out of the organization. This year it included Representatives Chester I. Long of the Seventh
district; W. A. Calderhead of the Fifith; E. W. Hoch of Marion; J. G. Johnson of Peabody; John Sullivan of Kansas
City. Representative Charles Curtis and E. E. Murphy of Leavenworth were also invited, but could not be present
on account of other engagements.
A feature of this particular log rolling, as well
as others of its kind just now was what amounted to be a joint debate over the merits of the propsed readjustment
of assessments among members of the order to permit acquring a reserve fund. This of course would be advantageous,
in a degree, as it would make the order more lasting, but it has its disadvantages in that it puts a big, perhaps
somewhat unwieldly insurance and social organization into the old line life insurance class, in a measure. Most
of the leading men of the Modern Woodmen favor the creation of a reserve fund, but not J. G. Johnson. Johnson,
who is a successful lawyer and farmer on the side, in Marion county, is national committeeman from Kansas, and
chairman of the national executive committee, thereby being the close friend of W. J. Bryan. He is also head attorney
for the Modern Woodmen. He is being groomed also for head counsul, the highest office in the order. E. E. Murphy
of Leavenworth is also a Democractic statesman. He was one of the crowd that rather "trimmed" Johnsona
nd Mack Love at the late Wichita convention and openly avows that he is after Johnson's scalp by reason of the
latter's membership on the national committee. Murphy is also after the position of head consul of the Woodmen,
and he is now a member of the advisory board of the order. So besides being rivals in Democratic politics, Johnson
and Murphy are combatants in the Modern WOodmen. This makes the present "scrap" over the proposed creation
of a reserave fund particularly of interest.
Johnson was on hand at the Westmoreland log rolling
to show up his views on the reserve fund proposition. Murphy was to have been there also, but instead sent John
Sullivan of Kansas City. Sullivan is a young Irshman, originally from Pottowatomie county and now a bright and
successful attorney of Kansas City. Like Johnson and Murphy, he too is considerably mixed up in Democratic politics,
and also in Woodcraft. He exploited the reserve fund ideas of Murphy, and he and Johnson each cleverly set forth
the pros and cons of the proportion.
Representative Long spoke Friday. He made a good
short speech, and drifted away from politics for the nonce. He stated that while he had belonged to the Woodmen
for some years, he was like some church members - didn't work much at the business. But he said he believed in
the principles of the order; he believed the fraternal life insurance; he thought the Woodmen were all right, else
he wouldn't have joined them and paid the Woodmen a fine tribute as being an organization which had done a world
of good in rural localities where taking out old line life insurance either was too expensive or too hard to get
at.
Mr. Long then spent some time on men and the policies
they stand for. He pointed out Lincoln as a great exponent of a great policy, even before his elevation to the
presidency - the policy of restricting the further spread of slavery. Later he became the exponent of preserving
the Union. He was so associated with these policies that to think of them, or of Lincoln himself, was at once to
identify the other. McKinley was another conspicuous man with a conspicuous policy. Mr. Long said though, as he
was not making a politicial address, he did not mention that policy. McKinley later, with the aid of his administration
carried to a speedy and successful close a war aged for the relief of an oppressed people. Then came the difficult
insular questions which Mr. Long said were not altogether political. McKinley had done his duty there. He died,
and bequeathed to his successor the completion of the tasks undone. That successor was associating himself and
his name, now, with those policies. One pertained to the further relief of Cuba. While we had gone to war for the
benefit of Cuba, so far, Porto Rick and the Phillippines, for whom we did not go to war, had profited more than
Cuba. To be sure we had withdrawn from Cuba but that was what we had promised to do after her government should
be established in that we simply had been honorable. But in completing our final separation from Cuba for the time
we had placed certain restrictions upon her, in what is known as the Platt amendment. In compensation for these
restrictions, the Cubans had asked President McKinley for reciprocit with the United States. President McKinley
explained how he could not grant this himself, but promised to recommend it to congress in his message. He died
before he could do so but his worthy successor had taken up the matter and he had made two recommendations to congress
along the lines McKinley had anticipated. So far, congress had refused to act but Mr. Long stated it as his firm
belief that finally reciprocity with Cuba should come. He said it was not entirely a political subject it had moral
and just phases, and inasmuch as no American industry would be harmed and as it was just and would be advantageous
to the United States he believed that this the great policy of McKinley's successor, would be carried to a successful
culmination.
Mr. Long was well received and made many new friends
in his brief stay in Pottawatomie County.
Pottawatomie county is a great big prosperous county.
It has immense fields of corn, as high as one can see, almost in this great year for that cereal. it has fields
recently shorn of their golden crops of wheat. It has lively, prosperous little towns. It has but one disadvantage
its county seat is removed from a railroad, practically and one almost is compelled to drive twenty miles or more
to go to Westmoreland where the official business of the county is done.
St. Marys is an impressive little community of
perhaps 1500 persons. It is in the extreme southeast part of the country. It is near the Shawnee, Jackson and Waubaunsee
county lines. One of the interesting things about the town is the Jesuit Catholic college. In 1848 the Jesuits
started a mission on the Indian reservation situated here. They labored for some years with succss with the Indians.
Then a little settlement sprung up and the town started. This was about 1854, or a little later, just about the
time of the Kansas Nebraska act. The town grew and so did the college. It now has many acres of beautiful grounds
and a dozen big, substantial buildings. There are about 400 pupils and any number of priests. Formerly there was
a convent here, also, but it later burned and when rebult was turned into a parochial school, which exists now.
Among the citizens of St. Mary's is an old gentleman
named M. W. Reddick, who twenty years ago was a faithful political friend and supporter of Governor E. N. Morrill
when the latter was in congress. Reddick was in Washington and was Morrill's clerk on the committee of invalid
pensions.
M. M. Lee who edits and prints the Eagle, a good
little Republican paper at St. Mary's is a former Seventh district editor. He ran different papers for some years
at Greensburg, in Kiowa county and once was on Chester I. Long's congressional committee. He is a great admirer
of Mr. Long and hopes to see him senator.
Jerry Simpson, former representative in congress
from the Seventh district, used to live in Pottawatomie and Jackson counties. The old timers around St. Marys will
tell you how they remember the fusion leader in the years gone by when he ran a sawmill up the creek from their
town.
The fertile bottoms around St. Marys, in the places
where the raging Kaw did not reach out of its banks this summer will produce this year most abundant crops. Corn
and potatoes are the principal products.
Wamego, up the Union Pacific to the west, is about
the size of St. Marys. It is also a prosperous little town. St Marys has a good many things to entitle it to distinction.
One is the Chilcott-tracy feud, and the natives talk interestingly of this vendetta. Mr. Tracy was a county attorney
of Pottawatomie county for four years; then was special assistant attorney general of Kansas. he had his county's
delegation at the Emporia convention in 1898 when J. M. Miller walked away with the congressional nominatino. But
B. H. Tracy is better known as the gentleman who failed to connet with the position of United States district attorney
for Kansas last winter, and R. M. Chilcott is known to fame as the gentleman who saw that the failure to connect
was properly made. Chilcott is an aggressive sort of a fellow and runs a good paper called the Times. He has sworn
eternal enmity toward Tracy and keeps his eye on the gentleman. Tracy meanwhile is attending to his law practice
and engaging in local politics when he gets a chance.
Driving to Westmoreland north from Wamego, you
go through Louisville, a little ancient city once the county seat. It is three miles north of Wamego, off the railroad.
It was founded early in Kansas territorial days and still prospers in a rather quiet sort of a way it is nicely
located but almost too near Wamego to grow materially. Louisville people proudly inform you that the old famous
California trail wound its sinuous way into Louisville went down its principal street and then departed in a likewise
winding way again for the west.
Mr. Long, Mr. J. G. Johnson and the writer rode
to Westmoreland from Wamego together. The writer said but little, listening attentively to the relating of interesting
things by the Republican and Democratic statesmen. Each was particularly good humor and each more or less reminiscent.
It was one of those little chance meetings between two clever men of public affairs, when one likes to be around
and do nothing but listen to their conversations.
Mr. Johnson talked freely about William J. Bryan.
Mr. Johnson in his capacity as one of the leaders of the national Democratic party on the Bryan side at least and
because of his management of two campaigns and his intimate acquaintance wih the Nebraska leader, is well qualified
to speak. He told of Bryan's wonderful personality his excellent strength as a speaker his very enduring political
powers in a long draw out campagin, and of his congeniality as a rare personal friend. He related how in the 1900
campaign, Bryan was started out of Chicago one morning at 7 o'clock - it was the Saturday before the election.
The train was a special one and went up into Wisconsin. It made forty stops and Mr. Bryan made as many talks of
greater or less length, before returning at 6 o'clock to Chicago. Then at 7 in the evening, Bryan accompanied by
Mr. Johnson started out for a tour of the city. When midnight came Bryan had added eleven more to his list of addresses
for the day, and those night speeches were much longer than those of the day. And yet, when, after midnight, Mr.
Johnson took Bryan to his train so the leader could leave for Nebraska, he delcared that Bryan said he felt better
and actually looked it, than in the morning. Mr. Johnson says the Nebraskan is not essentially or even remotely
an organization leader. He is rather a personal leader. In other words, he does not count so much on the political
organization the detail work of a campaign as he does on his wonderful personality. There were very many little
ancedotes Mr. Johnson related.
Speaking of his friend and associate, United States
Senator James K. Jones of Arkansas, chairman of the national committee and recently retired from the senate by
the Democratic party of his state. Mr. Johnson was expressing his regret, and saying that Jones case seemed to
be the inevitable end of most political leaders. He believed Jones to be honest, faithful and belonging to the
old school of statesmen which considered a record and upright life as being the requisites for continued supremacy.
But Jones got out of touch with his local organizations; his old friends who originally sent him to congress twenty-five
years ago, had died, many of them; Jones took to absenting himself considerably from his state, though in Washington
he was faithful in his duties - and finally the end came. A successor will be elected to Senator Jones in the next
Arkansas legislature.
Mr. Long got to talking to Ingalls. He spoke of
the great senator's wonderful command of language. He told of his acquaintance with him as a young man, and of
campaigning with him 10 years and more ago. He related little ancedotes, little peculiarities of the Atchison sneator
and of his eccentricities. He told how Ingalls swayed his audiences, yet how little he followed political issues
of the day. Mr. Long spoke too of the Ingalls irregularity on the silver question and how it caused Replublican
states men in Kansas some embarrassment in later years. But with all his irregularities and eccentricities, Mr.
Long said that he was perhaps the most wonderful man that ever came out of Kansas and paid him a high tribute.
He had said something about once speaking with Ingalls at a political meeting when a hearer of Ingalls said he
was reminded of a lecture the previous winter which was wonderfully similar to the political speech.
This recalled to Mr. Johnson the lecture of Mr.
Bryan on "The Conquering Nation." Mr. Johnson said this was purely and simly a high case of exposition
of Mr. Bryan's policital views yet it was well received everywhere on a lecture platform.
Mr. Johnson was also reminded of being at Washington
once upon a time just before Ingalls' retirement from the senate. He said he and other Kansans frequented Ingalls'
beautiful committee rooms those of the committee on the District of Columbia, of which the senator was chairman.
The Kansans gathered one morning had had roll call and were waiting for the arrival of Ingalls.
"Among the others," said Mr. Johnson,
was the now junior senator from Kansas. He was pacing the floor in that caged lion way of his. Finally Ingalls
came in. He said, in that inimitable way of his, "Good Morning, gentleman," and then added a few words
and a handshake to each. Burton continued to pace the floor. "Good morning, captain," the senator said,
"Good morning, senator," the future senator said, and kept on pacing. When you do you leave for home?
asked the senator. This afternoon, replied the Abilene man, and still he paced majestically. Quick as a flash,
Ingalls exclaimed, Thank God, and the session was over.
Johnson said at this time, even Burton's senatorial
aspirations were well known.
Mr. Long told stories of the Long-Simpson campaigns
and debates of years gone by, and related the shrewd, clever things his once antagonist had done in those contests.
Johnson would reply in kind and so three and a half hours passed, bringing the stories to a close ony as from the
surrounding hills, close up to the narrow-banked creek which runs by the narrow-banked creek which runs by it,
little Westmoreland nestling snugly and peacefully away half hidden was at last in sight. R. H. Faxon (The Wichita
Daily Eagle, July 27, 1902)
KANSAS CITY MAN SUICIDES
Judge A. G. Bradner, Grieving for Dead Wife, Takes
His Life
KANSAS CITY, Oct. 11---Judge A. G. Brander committed
suicide at his home here today by inhaling gas. He grieved for the death of his wife. Judge Brandner, who was
60 years of age, attempted on three different days recently to kill himself at the grave of his wife at Onaga,
Kan., by taking morphine. Brandner kept a diary of his Onaga attempts, recording the hour of the day at which
he swallowed each grain of morphine, and noting the effect of the drug. Brandner spent his early life in Montana
and often asserted that he was the first judge regularly chosen in that state.
(Idaho Statesman ~ October 12, 1905 ~ Submitted by Lori DeWinkler)
