Van Peyma's Paper from Kansas City, Kansas • 1

I VAN PEYMA'S PAPER. KANSAS STAATS ZEITUNG. CONTINUATION OF CIT THURSDAY, 1. 3, 1903. VOL.

VIII. NO. 41. PUBLIC OWNERSHIP DENOUNCED. Charles Francis Adams, the Boston Millionaire, Uses Plain and Strong Language.

Writes to R. T. Snediker, the Noted Political Economist of This City. June 1, 1903. My Dear Sir: have acknowledged the receipt of yours of the 27th enclosing clippings, which I have read with interest.

I cannot agree with you about the transportation question. It so chances have had occasion to examine very carefully municipal transportation, both for city service and for railroads, in Europe, I have heard great yarns about it. I can only say that, as the result of careful official examination on my part, I have never yet found in Europe anywhere a case of municipal, or public, transportation worthy of an instant's consideration as compared with our own. Whatever complaints you may make of it--private monopoly and all that--we here in America do things in the transportation line which in Europe they do not even dream of; and wherever the governmint lays its hand on a line it becomes, compared with our system, paralyzed at once. The municipal systems in use in Glasgow would lead to a riot within 24 hours if put in use 1 in Kansas City.

Under the circumstances do not look for sympathy from me in a movement in that direction. You may regard our present condition as being "in the frying pan." I can only say that, if you wriggle out of it into anything in use in Europe, you would find yourself sizzling in the fire at short notice. The fact is, when it comes to handing private business, any and every government is in my opinion utterly incompetent, whether it is a water system, schools, railroads, telegraphs, post offices, or what not. Every time private enterprise would do it four times as well, at about half the cost. So far as I know, experience is unifor in this respect.

Look at our school system. It is one mass of jobbe from beginning to end. The poliand jobbers are always worming into them, If you are looking for another object les on, study the government printing oft. re at Washington; every document published -lumbering, clumsy, -costs notoriously twice what it would cost if issued by a private press. And the post office! Just look at the system of fraud, bribery and stealing now being brought to light! Please don't talk to me of doing business through governmental machinery! It is one colossal exhibition of waste, extravagance and incompetence.

Believe me, CHARLES F. ADAMS. R. T. Snediker, Stock Hotel, Kansas City, Mo.

THE AMERICAN CIRCUS. W. R. Andrews, of Grand Rapids, at a recent toast, got off the following appeal to the Filipinos: "You Filipinos don't know what you are missing by not wanting to become citizens of this grand country of ours. There isn't anything like it under the sun.

You ought to send delegation over to see us-the land of the freeland of fine churches and 40,060 licensed saloons; Bibles, forts and guns, houses of prostitution, millionaires and paupers; theologians and thieves; liberalists and liars; politicians and poverty; Christians and chain gangs; schools and scalawags; trusts and tramps; money and misery; homes and hunger; virtue and vice; a land where you can get a good Bible for 15 cents or a bad drink of whisky for five cents; where we have a man in congress with three wives and a lot in the penitentiary for having two wives; where some men make sausage out of their wives and some want to eat them raw; where we make bologna out of dogs, canned beef out of horses and sick cows, and corpses out of the people who eat it; where we put a man ir jail for not having the means of support and on the rock pile for asking fo. a job of work; where we license baw 'y houses and fine men for preaching Christ on the street corner; where we have a congress of 401) men to make laws and a supreme court of nine men to set them aside; where good whisky makes bad men and bad men make good whisky; where newspapers are paid for suppressing the truth and made rich for teaching a lie; where professors draw their convictions from the same place they do their salaries; where preachers are paid $25,000 a year to dodge the devi: and tickle the ears of the wealthy: where business consists of getting hold of property in any way that won't land you in the penitentiary; where trusts 'hold up' and poverty 'holds where men vote for what they do not want, for fear they won't get what they do want by voting for it; where 'niggers' can vote and women can't; where a girl who goes wrong is made an outcast and her male partner flourishes as a gentleman; where women wear false- hair and men 'dock' their horses' tails; where the political 071.81 10947 No. "76 SAMPLE COPY. Peyma's Paper. James Van Peyma, Publisher.

ISSUED EVERY THURSDAY. Subscription Per Year, Six .50 Cents, In Advance." Office: 2016 North Fifth Street, Kansas Kan. Telephone, 303 White. ADVERTISING RATES: 10 cents per line, 50 cents per -first Ansertion. TO THE PUBLIC.

In compliance with urgent and almost universal requests from sub-scribers of the Kansas Staats Zeitung, a newspaper published in this city in the German language for over eight the publication is continued with this number under the name "Van Peyma's Paper," in the English language, retaining, however, four pages in the German language and of special interest to the German ers. Mr. Jacob Frohwerk, publisher the Kansas Staats Zeitung, will remain with this paper. The subscription price, $1 per year in advance, will remain the same. The policy of the paper shall be in the future, as it Thas been in the past, a fearless and energetic advocacy of everything that is right and just for mankind.

We will advocate what we believe to be the true principles of the Jeffer: sonian democracy, whose platform we believe to be: Government is instituted for mankind, for the freedom, happiness and welfare of all. The less government the better consistent with the protecation of life, liberty and protection of property. In order to protect those we must delegate a certain amount of our liberty to certain authorities, whom we call servants. But in reality they are our masters for the length of time they hold office. In foreign countries these men are generally elected for life.

In this country our most prominent officials, next to the president, are appointed for life. The others are elected and can be changed when they become corrupt. For that reason all public mastera should he elected by a direct vote tof the people. Our system of government is superior a to all others; still it is far from per: fect. With all our great natural advantages, the absolute necessities of life should be obtained by one hour labor.

It is the fear of want that drives men and women to crimes. The great majority of mankind are honest, but the fear of want in the future for their families drives many to dishonesty. Should the absolute wants be as free as air, most men would prefer to leave an honorable name than wealth. The Jefferson theory is to exempt the poor people from all forms of taxation. Under our present form of taxation for national purposes does ler with all his millions pay as much to support the United States government as many men who work for $15 per week.

We do not mean in proportion, but in actual money paid. We are safe in saying not one of our multi-millionaires pay $1,000 per year to support our national government; still they, not to exceed 3,000 families, receive one-half the income of all the people of the United States. To this Jeffersonian democrats say: Collect an income tax from all persons with an income over $4,000 per annum for all national expenses. Abolish all tariff and internal taxes. They now amount to about $600,000,000 per year.

However, should they be collected, the money should be used to pension the mothers of families of three children or over. This would give each mother $100 per year. We will advocate the following prin- NATIONAL AFFAIRS. All officers should be elected by direct vote. No life term of office.

Free trade with all the world. The repeal of all internal revenue taxes. Tax all incomes over $4,000 per annum. The national government should not interfere state affairs until called on by the governor. We believe the demonetization of silver in '73 was unjust, that the business of the country is now settled on a gold basis and should remain thus, We believe W.

J. Bryan to be one of the great men of the world and the 'best friend the working men have had for many years, but we believe he is wrong on the silver question to-day. We are opposed to such trimmers as Gorman or Cockrell for president, or a traitor like Cleveland; we should even prefer Roosevelt. Our choice for president is the greatest man in public life to-day, Joseph W. Folk, of St.

Louis, who, if nominated, will be elected. All authority delegated to the legislature or state should be repealed and self-government should be retained as far as practical. Exempt all personal property for the collection of debts. Declare all personal property gages illegal. No bonds should be given unless voted for by a majority of the people.

All public should be sold to the highest bidder. We are opposed to public ownership of all public utilities. We believe the salaries of our executive officers, such as legislators, councilmen and mayors, should be largely increased. The mayor and council of this city spend over $3,000 per day of our money. They are paid $2,000 for mayor and $200 for councilmen.

The salary of mayor should be increased to $5,000 per year and the councilmen to $1,800. On the other side we pay the sheriff, probate judge, recorder of deeds and clerk of the courts salaries of $5,000 to $12,000 per year. They are merely passive officials, and none of them should be paid over 000 per year, fees included. The present fee system should be abolished. We admit as public masters they are entitled to their salaries, but not to any fees for performing their duty.

Although intemperance is a great evil, we are in favor of open and respectable saloons. If the license is accepted by the city and county authorities they should protect them from blackmail, the same as any other allthorized business. Under present conditions we would tolerate the higher class of gambling, such as is patronized by the well-to-do. We are absolutely opposed to all forms of small gambling, such as policy shops and slot machines. At the present time the latter are suppressed, but the former we understand are still in operation.

We believe all forms of gambling is wrong, but absolutely criminal when poor people are tempted to risk their nickels and pennies in a game where they can only expect 15 to 20 cents for each dollar invested. We request communications from any of our readers criticising any part of the above platform. Respectfully, JAMES VAN PEYMA. A DRAMA IN FOUR ACTS. ACT I.

Bernard Corrigan and Mayor Gilbert on the stage. Gilbert: "I tell you, Mr. Corrigan, this administration will not concede an iota to you. There is, in fact, nothing to concede. You have to build that stock vards line and have to rebuild the viaduct, according to your franchise.

Adieu." (Great applause from the audience.) Gilbert off. Corrigan: "Well, I be d-! Have you ever seen such a stubborn fellow before?" Enters Billy Buchan. Buchan: "What is troubling you, Mr. Corrigan?" Corrigan, savagely: "D- it! It is all your fault; you put that fool clause in the franchise about keeping in repair and maintaining viaducts and bridges. Now comes the flood, takes down these bridges and we are in a h- of a fix." Buchan: "How could I know aboutthat flood?" Corrigan: "Well, let it go.

I just saw Gilbert and told him that I would not rebuild the viaduct to Armourdale unless he gives me a right-of-way for our stock yards line." Buchan: Corrigan, you are great, indeed; who would have ever thought of that! But I beg of you, (here Buchan winked his right eye) please let me attend to this matter." Corrigan: "Think you can do it?" Buchan: "Watch me and see! have some old job lots in the council who helped pass the original franchise. These fellows will do anything for me." Corrigan: "I am glad to hear it, but don't let this matter be so expensive as the last." Buchan: "I'll attend to this matter to your satisfaction." Both offCurtain Drop. ACT II. City Counselor Dana on the stage. Dana: "Never shall I lend my assistance to cheat the people out of their rights.

My master and I shall standBuchan enters. Buchan: "Dana, you are young and ambitious. I know you stand high in your profession as an attorney. You are a shining light at the bar. I and the Metropolitan company control politics in this county.

We will make you state senator if you will be fair with us." Dana: "Do you really mean it, Mr. Buchan?" Buchan: "More than that; Gilbert shall be re-elected, that I promise, too. Now, come off your high perch. I understand Gilbert has gone away; telegraph him to come back at once and everything will be lovely." Dana: "Corrigan is great, and Buchan is his prophetCurtain Drops. ACT III.

Gilbert and Dana present. Gilbert: "And is it true that I shall be re-elected? It all appears as a aream to me." Dana: "It is true." Gilbert: "But what excuse can I offer to the people?" Dana: "Tell them that you will compel the Metropolitan to transfer passengers across the Kaw river free. The bridge will soon be completed anyhow, and it won't hurt our friends Corrigan and Buchan at all." Gubert: "I'll sign agreement." Curtain Drops. ACT IV. (Corrigan, Buchan and Gilbert on the stage.

Dana in the Corrigan: "Mr. Mayor, we will build the viaduct." Gilbert: "In the name of my people I thank you." Makes a deep bow. Buchan: "Mr. Gilbert, will you promise to always be good in the future?" Gilbert: "I promise." Tableau with Dana in the foreground. SAME OLD STORY.

Great Gas Syndicate Receives Franchise. People's Rights Again Given Away. The great American gas syndicate received from the city council last Tuesday evening a 30-year renewal of its franchise in this city. It is the same old story. The syndicate gets everything and the people practically nothing.

Of course the new franchise contains a few new features such as extensions of mains, rental for the use of bridges and viaducts and other like hocus pokus. Much is made of the provision that the company must put up in this city a separate plant and pay into the city treasury two per cent. of its gross receipts and ten per cent. of its net profits after the company has itselt first secured ten per cent. on its inrestment.

The latter provision is absolutely ridiculous and is intended only to bamboozle the people. Even a schoolboy knows that the stock of the syndicate is watered to such an extent that it cannot possibly earn ten per cent. But such a provision in a franchise reads well and allows the council who grants such nonsensical franchise to point with pride to this ten per cent. clause. What the council should have exacted and what is asked and secured by other more enterprising and to municipalities is a reduction of the price of gas.

With our present high development in manufacturing gas the cost of production has been reduced to a minimum and dollar gas is classed in all communities -not earned and in then grasp of the great gas syndicate as "has been." One Shot at Kansas City Depot. The following poem appeared on the walls of the Missouri Pacific depot at Kansas City, and is supposed to have been written by a tramp: From east to west I bum my way, In tanks and box cars ride; I never found a place to stay That hurt manly pride, Till Fate compelled me one cold day, 'Twas sore against my willTo while three weary hours away a In the depot at this hill. How slow the weary moments roll In this infernal cell; Whose wails are scratched and smeared with coal, And, Lord, what a smell. I've dined in cow sheds, Fed with swine and made a meal of swill, But now disgraced I here repine In the depot at this hill. Slept in hay stacks; froze my feet; Been chewed by rats and mice, And now upon this dingy seat I furnish food for lice.

Make rough my path and hard my way, Lord, if that's Thy will, But in Thy vengeance send me not To the depot at this hill. Tear down this pestilential place, Reeking with filth and slime, No longer let its stench disgrace The Missouri Pacific line. But now good-by, adieu, farewell, Of this I've had my fill. -I'd rather spend three hours in hell Than the depot at this hill. CHATTEL MORTGAGE SHARKS.

Of all the disreputable means of making money there is none so low as loaning money at ten per cent. per month on chattel security. His victim is as much his slave as the negro ever was in the south. God pity the poor family who falls in their clutches. We know of one man who, through misfortunes not caused by any fault of his own, thought it necessary to borrow $200.

He imagined he was in the fire before, but he certainly has been in the frying pan for the past two years. For his note of $200 he actually received $180 in cash. His salary was $60 per month. During the next 12 months he did not pay any. thing on the principal, but interest to the amount of $240.

He now commenced paying $10 per month on the principal and interest to the amount of $174, so at the end of 24 months he had paid altogether $534, leaving a balance still unpaid of $80. There are hundreds of such cases in this city. We believe the devil already has a frying pan sizzling for such extortionates. But that is not enough; all debts of that nature should be declared illegal. We would like to see one of these unfortunates who has already paid double or treble the amount of the original loan refuse to pay any more and have a test case made of it.

We would do all in our power to assist him. If the fraudulent defense was made that the note was in the hands of innocent purchasers we would prosecute him for perjury and the amount of interest fraudulentIly obtained. wire-puller has displaced the patriotic statesman; where men vote for a thing one day and 'cuss' it 364 days; where we have prayers on the floor of our national capitol and whisky in the cellar; where we spend $500 to bury a statesman who is rich and $10 to put away a working man who is poor; where to be virtuous is to be lonesome and to be honest is to be a crank; where we sit on the safety valve of energy and pull wide open the throttle of conscience; where gold is substance -the one thing sought for; where we pay $15,000 for a dog and 15 cents a dozen to a poor woman for making shirts; where we teach the 'untutored' Indian eternal life from the Bible and kill him off with bad whisky; where we put a man in jail for stealing a loaf of bread and in congress for stealing a railroad; where the check book talks, sin walks in broad day light, justice is asleep, crime runs amuck, corruption permeates our whole social and political fabric, and the devil laughs from every street corner. Come to us, Fillies! We've got the greatest aggregation of good things and bad things, hot things and cold things, all sizes, varieties and colors, ever exhibited under one tent." LYNCH LAW. Is It Justidable at Any Time? The papers are filled with articles and interviews with our most prominent men, who all deplore the frequency of lynching.

In a general way the American people obey the law, but there are times and circumstances when it is the duty of every Christian to violate the law. The will of all the people is above all the laws in our statute books, supreme court and all. For instance, 45 years ago the supreme court said that negro slavery was right, and it was a crime to help a negro to freedom or even a crime not to inform the authorities that he saw an escaped slave. We say all honor and respect is due the man who violated the law and could not see the poor slave. Many years ago we had a very intimate friend by the name of Capt.

McGinn (afterwards employed by the Santa Fe railroad). When about 15 years old he was one day in the slave market at St. Louis. He saw two old fellows about 70 years old, whom he recognized as wealthy, respected citizeus, examining two mutatio girls, who they bought for mistresses, in such a disgusting way that he there took an oath that he would, if necessary, sacrifice his life to protect those girls from those lecherous old scoundrels. He assisted them to escape.

He violated the law, but was he not right in placing his own judgment of right and wrong above that of the supreme court? The next year he entered the army and fought to the end of the war. Another instance: A few years ago at Paris, there was a three-year- old girl lost or missing. Searching parties were formed and for two days no trace could be found of the child. At the termination of the second day the poor, mangled child was found in the woods, lying at the foot of a large tree, the heart still palpitating, her head crushed, a dent in the tree and part of her silken hair in that dent, her little body most horribly mutilated. It was very evident the fiend who had stolen her had just left and before leaving her had taken her by the legs and dashed her head against the tree.

Imagine the feeling of the men who picked up this poor, mangled child. Imagine the feeling of the mother and father as their baby was returned to them. Imagine the thought of every white mother or every black mother not only in Paris, but in the world. Would they have said, "let the law take its course?" No, they would say if we find that tiger we will not only lynch him at once but we will make him suffer a fraction of the torture that poor child did. A few days after the wretch was captured, proved guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt, confessed the crime and said, "you can't no more than hang me, nohow." The people of Paris, regardless of color or condition, said that tiger shall die by torture, and he was burned to death.

Since that there has not been a single similar crime committed at Paris. Tis true it was horrible, but better that one guilty man suffer than one innocent child. To the question, is lynch' law ever justifiable? we say, emphatically, yes. We fully subscribe to it in the case mentioned. We notice that Justice Brewer, formerly of Leavenworth, alSO has a similar plan.

He favors an immediate trial and an immediate execution of the sentence without appeal. This would be probably better, so as to conform to the law. However, there are few lynchings in the United States except for one nameless crime, and in these cases if the death penalty is inflicted by a jury of 12 or a jury of 100 it is immaterial. Still it is a question. Have human beings a right to take human life? They can destroy, but they cannot restore.

Would it not be better to class all people who are guilty of outrage and murder as insane and dangerous to society, castrate them, blind them and allow them to exist at some penal institution or roam about, blinded and impotent, if they. wished, GROSS NEGLIGENCE. Police Court Docket Not Kept Up. During One Whole Menth No Entry Made. According to the police court docket of Kansas City, there has not been a single case tried in that court during the whole month of Atigust.

At least there was not a single entry made in the docket during that whole month, when a reporter for this paper inspected the book August 31. Now the law makes it incumbent upon the police judge or his clerk to docket all cases tried in that court. This certainly does not mean one month, or a year after a case has been tried, but as soon as possible after the trial of a case has been concluded. There is not a business man anywhere who would not keep his account ledger up to date and we believe that public business should be kept in the same manner. The time required to hold police court in this city will not require over three hours each day and for this service the city pays the judge the very handsome sum of $75 per month.

It is certainly not asking too much that the judge should keep his docket up to date for the inspection of the public. MARRIAGE LICENSES. AUGUST 27., Age. Clarence J. ....43 Helen Florence Monfort .25 Peter Schueller ....24 Mary Bukoratz ....18 E.

L. Morris ....18 Mary C. Kraags ....18 AUGUST 28. Eddie Mathis Lizzie Nolds John F. Weiss ....25 Mary J.

Campbell ....27 Ed F. Moore ....36 Mittis Hampton .29 AUGUST 29. C. E. Flower ....34 Elizabeth Lamb ....28 William Graham Carl Jefferson E.

Greer ....40 Jennie B. Galiger ....26 AUGUST 31. Gustav Van Bach .22 Ethel Dickson Edwin. Reed Ridgely Elizabeth Frazier John Williams ....21 Mabel Wallace J. N.

Miller Emma B. Bause ...18 Russell A. Allen Ida Kitchen John Ferris .23 Hana Mansoe ....18 SEPTEMBER 1. Matt Stutesmann ....26 Maud Bradfield 19 James W. Jones Clara M.

Peak .16 Walter Borowski Minnie W. Longan James T. Lee ....38 Julia Kirby .28 SEPTEMBER 2. Hugh Hanmontree .24 Maud Broekmann Sylvester Lane Magdalena Westey John F. Hassig Carrie Blanch Armentrout James E.

Carpenter .24 Allie Eugene Lewis. 19 John Bruenmer Jennie Ehler William Messinger Willie Brown .....18 Joseph B. Barger 22 Nettie Martin 18 Estimates Cheerfully Furnished. Repair Work Promptly Done. J.

W. YARDLEY, DEALER IN Builders' and General HARDWARE Stoves, Tin and Graniteware 1820 N. 5th KANSAS CITY, KAN..