Jasper County Democrat, Volume 9, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 October 1906 — THE GOVERNOR'S “CAUSE.” [ARTICLE]

THE GOVERNOR'S “CAUSE.”

A leading Republican paper of the state, published in kicluqond, and representative of a considerable part .of the citizenship of that city, recently has said tb-’t Governor Hanly is “a sham and a fraud, a political hypocrite, a thorough-going machine politician” and “a consummate demagogue.” This was said in view of the fact that Mr. Hanly has been appealing to the people to support his “cause”—whatever that may be—by voting for the candidates on the Republican state and legislative tickets. The governor says that he wants his “cause” sustained at whatever cost to his own “political future." He would have everybody understand that this thing which he calls his “cause” includes, among other things, what he speaks of as “law enforcement.” Now what has Mr Hanly done in the way of honest law enforcement? As a matter of cold fact he has done con» ■ paratively little. He has actually not I done as much as some of his predecessors. But he has bragged more than all of them put together. He has kicked up the dust and made a loud,/ noise . He was determined to attract attention to himself. Before the chautauquas and in the churches and at religious conferences he has talked with vast solemnity and tearful egotism about his meager accomplishments as though they were the sum and substance of all things moral and righteous. He did all this believing that he could deceive the good people of the state and intending to deceive them. But what has Governor Hanly done that entitles him to ask the support of the citizens of the state for the candidates on his party ticket. The Richmond paper above mentioned says that in that city he “stood for a polluted home, legalized and blackmailed prostitution and political corruption, and stood there knowingly, defiantly, insolently, because he had an alliance with the machine.” Many similar charges have been made in other localities and they have been made loudly. But Hanly whistled them all down the wind. He rattled his poker chips and shouted “French Lick” but did not breathe the name of the aristocratic “Columbia Club” of Indianapolis nor the protected dens in Lafayette and other cities where his own police boards have full sway. He declaims from the stump that he stopped betting on horse races in the state, but brutal prize fights take place without interference right under his nose after long public advertising. Governor Matthews drove the prize-fighters from the state and suppressed the Roby iniquity and did many other things, but he was just a plain Democrat and not —well, he was not a professed saint like the Hon. J. Frank Hanly. So, after all, what is this “cause” that Governor Hanly is talking about? Secretary Shaw has been in the state making “stand pat” speeches for the Republicans. While he is an lowan he has a different sort of “idea” from, the one tvhich bears the brand of Governor* Cummins of the same state. Cummins is for tariff revision. The convention which renominated him for governor hissed Shaw from the hall. Cummins is coming to Indiana to make Republican speeches. He and Shaw should have come together and held a joint debate on the tariff and the other things which have split the Republicans of lowa into two camps. It would have been interesting to Democrats and instructive—and embarrassing—to the Republicans. The fact that both are being used separately shows that the Republican campaign managers are carrying out their game of tariff slim-slam. The Indianapolis Star, the state Republican organ, says that “Indiana’s statesmen seem agreed on one thing—the annexation of Cuba— and that’s some comfort.” Yes, but they disagree with the present view of the Roosevelt administration even on that. As to all other questions, and especially the tariff, these Indiana "statesmen” not only disagree among themselves, but one class of them—the standpatters—disagree radically with a large part of their party. There never was a. time when they were so totally at sea about their issues. And in the meantime Governor Hanly is laying that he is the “issue.” If you want to indorse political hypocrisy, official extravagance and reseality, Increased taxes and shameless slander of the citizenship of Indiana, then you will vote as Governor Hanly asks ‘you to vote. But if you want to vote against such things, you will repudiate the governor's advice and vote the Democratic ticket. k .