USA > Kansas > Kansas; a cyclopedia of state history, embracing events, institutions, industries, counties, cities, towns, prominent persons, etc. with a supplementary volume devoted to selected personal history and reminiscence, Voilume I > Part 14
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Aubrey's name is sometimes given as "Felix X. Aubrey," and some writers spelled the last name "Aubry." In 1853 a steamboat built for the Missouri river trade was named the "Felix X. Aubrey" after this daring and adventurous character.
Auburn, a money order postoffice of Shawnee county, is in the town- ship of the same name, about 15 miles southwest of Topeka and 8 miles west of Wakarusa, which is the nearest railroad station. It is a trading center for that section of the county, has Baptist, Methodist and Presby- terian churches, telephone connection with Topeka and other adjacent points, and in 1910 reported a population of 72. Two rural free de- livery routes start from the Auburn office and supply daily mail to the farmers of the vicinity.
Augusta, an incorporated city of Butler county, is located at the confluence of the Walnut and Whitewater rivers, 13 miles south of Eldorado, the county seat. The first attempt to establish a town here was in 1857, when a party of explorers from Lawrence laid out a town and named it Augusta. The following year a party from Topeka jumped the claim of the former founders and laid out the town of "Fontanella," and another account states that the town of "Orizonia" was also laid out at the junction of the rivers in 1858. The lands then belonged to the Indians, who raided the town and drove off the settlers in the spring of 1859. For several years the site then lay vacant, but near the close of the Civil war Hagan & Morrill opened a trading post there. After the treaty with the Osages in 1868 Shamleffer & James bought the old claim for $40 and established a trading house, and it is said that the town was named Augusta for Mrs. James. A school house was built in 1870 and the same year a postoffice was established with C. N. James as postmaster. In 1871 Augusta was incorporated as a town, with W. A. Shannon as chairman of the first board of trustees. On May 8, 1880, the first train on the St. Louis & San Francisco R. R. reached Augusta, and the next year the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe completed its line to the town, which from that time experienced a steady and substantial growth. The Missouri Pacific has since entered the city, so that the Augusta of the present day has railroad lines radiating in five different directions. This makes it an available shipping and distributing point, and being situated in a fine agricultural region, large quantities of grain,
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live stock, etc., are annually exported. Extensive stone quarries in the vicinity also furnish a great deal of material for shipment. The city has two banks, one daily and two weekly newspapers, some fine mercantile houses, a good public school system, telegraph, telephone and express facilities, an international money order postoffice with four rural free delivery routes emanating from it, and in 1910 had a population of 1,235.
Aulne, a money order postoffice of Marion county, is in Wilson town- ship, and is a station on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific R. R. 6 miles south of Marion, the county seat. It has a good local trade, does considerable shipping, and in 1910 reported a population of 150.
Aurora, an incorporated town of Cloud county, is located in the town- ship of the same name, on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe R. R. that runs from Strong City to Superior, Neb., 12 miles southeast of Con- cordia, the county seat. It has a bank, a Catholic church, some good stores, a money order postoffice with two rural routes, telephone con- nection, telegraph and express offices, good schools, and in 1910 reported a population of 269.
Austin, a station on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas R. R., in Neosho county, is located in Canville township, II miles northwest of Erie, the county seat, and 4 miles from Chanute from whence it receives mail daily by rural delivery.
Australian Ballot .- (See Election Laws.)
Avery, a rural hamlet of Reno county, is situated on Peace creek, about 20 miles northwest of Hutchinson, the county seat. The inhabitants receive mail by rural free delivery from Sterling, Rice county, which is the nearest railroad station.
Avoca, a hamlet of Jackson county, is located near the west line of the county, II miles southwest of Holton, the county seat. It receives its mail from Soldier.
Axtell, an incorporated town of Marshall county, is located in Murray township, 25 miles east of Marysville, the county seat, at the junction of the Missouri Pacific and the St. Joseph & Grand Island railroads. It has banking facilities, a weekly newspaper, a money order postoffice with three rural routes, telegraph and express offices, and had 748 inhabitants in 1910. The community was settled in the '6os and the town was laid out in 1872 by the St. Joseph Town company. The postoffice was estab- lished the same year. The first store was kept by a man known as "Shoestring" Dickinson.
B
Bachelder, a town in Geary county. (See Milford.)
Bacon, a small hamlet of Lincoln county, is located in the Spillman creek valley, about 20 miles northwest of Lincoln, the county seat. The people there receive mail by rural free delivery from Cedron. Sylvan Grove on the Union Pacific is the nearest railroad station.
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Badger, a village of Cherokee county, is a station on the St. Louis & San Francisco R. R. in the eastern part of the county, with a population of 50 in 1910, and receives mail by rural free delivery from Smithfield, Mo.
Bailey, Edgar H. S., chemist, was born at Middlefield, Conn., Sept. 17, 1848. In 1873 he received the degree of Ph. B. from Yale Univer- sity, and for the year following was an instructor in chemistry in that institution. He then became an instructor in the Lehigh University at South Bethlehem, Pa., where he remained until 1883, visiting Strass- burg, however, in 1881 as a student along special lines. Prof. Bailey was appointed chemist to the Kansas State Board of Agriculture in 1885. In 1895 he visited Leipzig, and in 1899 became chemist to the Kansas State Board of Health. The next year he was made director of the chem- ical laboratory in the University of Kansas, which position lie still occu- pies. Prof. Bailey assisted in and contributed to the reports of the Kan- sas geological survey ; in connection with H. P. Cady is the author of a laboratory Guide to Qualitative Analysis; was councilor of tlie society of Sigma Xi in 1908; is a member of various scientific societies, and honorary member of the American Institute of Homeopathy, and a con- tributor to scientific and chemical journals. On July 13, 1876, he married Miss Aravesta Trumbauer, of Bethlehem, Pa.
Bailey, Willis J., governor of the State of Kansas from 1903 to 1905, was born in Carroll county, Ill., Oct. 12, 1854. He was educated in the common schools, the Mount Carroll high school, and graduated at the University of Illinois as a member of the class of 1879. In 1904 his Alma Mater conferred upon him the degree of LL. D. In 1879, soon after completing his college course, he accompanied his father to Nemaha county, Kan., where they engaged in farming and stock raising, and founded the town of Baileyville. Upon reaching his majority, Gov. Bailey cast his lot with the Republican party, and since that time he has been an active and consistent advocate of the principles espoused by that organization. In 1888 he was elected to represent his county in the state legislature; was reëlected in 1890; was president of the Republican State League in 1893; was the Republican candidate for Congress in the First district in 1896, and in June, 1898, was nominated by the state convention at Hutchinson as the candidate for Congressman at large, defeating Richard W. Blue. After serving in the Fifty-sixth Congress he retired to his farm, but in 1902 was nominated by his party for governor. At the election in November he defeated W. H. Craddock, the Democratic candidate by a substantial majority, and began his term as governor in Jan., 1903. At the close of his term as governor he re- moved to Atchison, and since 1907 has been vice-president and manager of the Exchange National bank of that city. Shortly after his retire- ment from the office of governor he was prominently mentioned as a candidate for United States senator, and in 1908 a large number of Re- publicans of the state urged his nomination for governor. Mr. Bailey has always been interested in behalf of the farmers of the country, and
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from 1895 to 1899 he was a member of the Kansas State Board of Agri- culture.
Bailey's Administration .- In accordance with the provisions of the state constitution, Gov. Bailey was inaugurated on the second Monday in Jan., 1903, which was the 12th day of the month. The next day the legislature met in regular session, with Lieut .- Gov. David J. Hanna as president of the senate and J. T. Pringle as speaker of the house. As soon as the two branches of the general assembly were organized the governor submitted his message, which did not differ materially from the messages of his predecessors. In his introduction he congratulated the people of the state on their progress and present condition by say- ing :
"The business and commercial interests of Kansas have never been upon a stronger or more substantial basis than now. No state in the Union has absorbed more of the general prosperity that has come to the whole country during the past six years than has Kansas. New life, new hope and new energy have come to our people as the result of these conditions, and the increase in value of nearly all real and personal of the state. property has largely enhanced the wealth and commercial importance . The official statistics indicate that, in the decade just closed, the increase in value of farm products has been nearly 24 per cent., and of live stock more than 53 per cent., or, for all combined, 31.6 per cent."
Then, referring to the bank commissioners' report, he gave the num- ber of state banks as 477, a gain of 89 in the last two years. The capital of these banks amounted to $7,751,000, a gain of $1,138,000; their sur- plus of $1,769,701 showed a gain of $419,491 ; the deposits amounted to $40,135,176, a gain of $8,508,841 ; and their loans had increased during the two years from $21,812,835 to $32,885,046.
Notwithstanding the general prosperity of the state, he counseled economy in the matter of appropriations. "I call your attention," said he, "to the lavish waste of the public money in the printing of useless and unnecessary public documents. The law, in many instances, pro- vides for the publishing of reports and documents far beyond any de- mand or necessity, and, as a result, the store rooms of the capitol build- ing are rapidly filling up with this matter that is worse than useless. I am sure a careful inspection of this accumulated material will convince any legislator of the necessity of reform along this line."
On the subject of Congressional apportionment he said : "Kansas has eight members in the national Congress and the state is divided into seven Congressional districts, necessitating the election of one member at large. I recommend the redistricting of the state and the formation of eight Congressional districts, as contemplated by law. The Congress- man at large, while he has the same rights upon the floor and in the committee room as the member who has a district, is practically denied other prerogatives of a member. Each Congressional district is entitled to certain recognition, certain patronage. Kansas practically loses one-
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eighth of what she is entitled to under the present apportionment. The fact that a district has 60,000 or 70,000 more population that it is en- titled to does not entitle the people of the district to any more recogni- tion than they would have if they had the number contemplated by law. I earnestly hope that this legislature will reapportion the state and fol- low the example set by other states."
The governor then reviewed the condition of the state institutions and the work of the railroad and tax commissioners. He recommended the passage of a law authorizing the appointment of a state architect ; an ap- propriation to maintain the office of state accountant as contemplated by the law of 1895; the establishment of a state fish hatchery "with the view of propagating such fish as are adapted to the streams of Kansas," and called attention to the fact that other states, where conditions were no more favorable than in Kansas, had made fish hatcheries profitable un- dertakings. He also recommended a revision of the insurance laws, because in the enactment of new laws on this subject there had been a lack of positive corrections and repealing acts, hence, "as a result, the insurance department is in possession of a compilation of laws in which there are contraditions and inconsistencies."
He announced the completion of the capitol building, so that "no further expenditure is now needed, save for its proper maintenance ;" expressed the hope that the State of Kansas would "cooperate with the national government in all efforts toward improvement, and liberally aid all movements tending to the developing of the National Guard;" and called attention to the report of the commissioner of labor, especially the recommendation that a law be enacted prohibiting the employment of children under the age of fourteen years in shops and factories. In his conclusion he again called attention to the necessity of using judg- ment and discrimination in the expenditure of the public funds, as fol- lows :
"The natural pride every citizen has in his state suggests at once that the institutions of the state should be maintained upon a plane com- mensurate with the dignity and growth of the state. This is commend- able : but there is another interest that should be sacred to every one charged with responsibility, and that is the duty we owe to the burden- bearers, the people who pay the taxes. The people will justify a gener- ous support of all the great interests of our state, but they will condemn any profligate waste of the public money."
Most of the governor's recommendations were observed by the legis- lature, though three bills in which he was especially interested failed to become laws. They were the acts redistricting the state for repre- sentatives in Congress, establishing state depositories, and the child labor law. The principal acts passed at this session were those estab- lishing the indeterminate sentence system; increasing the salary of the superintendent of public instruction ; providing for tuition fees at the state educational institutions ; continuing the bounty on sugar beets ; placing suburban electric railways under the control of the board of
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railroad commissioners; appropriating $100,000 for the Louisiana Pur- chase exposition ; curtailing the number of state reports to be issued by the state printer; reestablishing the office of state accountant; reorgan- izing the National Guard to conform to the provisions of the act of Con- gress known as the "Dick bill;" requiring the State of Oklahoma to re- lieve Kansas of caring for her prisoners after two years; making the state free employment bureau a permanent institution, and providing for the establishment of a state fish hatchery.
Two constitutional amendments were submitted to the people, to be voted upon at the general election of 1904. One related to the veto power of the governor, as defined by section 14, article 2, and the other made the state printer an elective office.
On Jan. 20 the legislature adopted a resolution requesting the sena- tors and representatives from Kansas in the national Congress "to use their best endeavors and influence toward securing for our state the honor of having named for her one of the new first-class battle ships either already provided for or to be provided for in the near future." (See Battle-ship Kansas.)
A joint session of the two houses was held on Jan. 28 for the election of a United States senator. Chester I. Long was elected over William A. Harris by a vote of 123 to 35. Mr. Long was present and made a short address, after which he was presented with his certificate of election for the term beginning on March 4, 1903.
Heavy floods in the spring of 1903 did great damage in various parts of the state, the greatest losses being at Topeka, Lawrence and Kansas City. To relieve the flood situation in the Kaw valley Gov. Bailey issued a proclamation on June 17, calling the legislature to meet in special ses- sion on the 24th. In his message at the opening of the special session, Gov. Bailey said :
"The floods which have recently swept over a portion of our fair state have created conditions unusual and extraordinary. The valley of the Kaw and its tributaries, which but a short time ago gave promise of rich harvests, have been devastated by the angry waters, villages and cities have been inundated, homes have been obliterated, and the prop- erty loss to the citizens of our state is so vast that at this time its amount is but a conjecture. Bridges that spanned our rivers that are absolutely necessary for the every-day transaction of business have, in many cases, been swept away and others made impassable, making necessary the ex- penditure of large amounts of money before the avenues of commerce can again be opened. Especially is this true of Wyandotte county, where the immense business between Kansas City, Kan., and Kansas City, Mo., is suspended until the river can again be bridged. While the conditions are the most acute in Wyandotte county, yet the same situation obtains in several of the other counties. In some of the counties, those charged with the responsibility of repairing the great losses find themselves helpless under the law to meet these unusual and extraordinary condi- tions, and it is for the purpose of giving such enabling legislation as is
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necessary to meet these exigencies, caused by the recent floods, that I have exercised the power vested in me by the constitution of our state to convene the legislature in extra session."
Immediately after the reading of the governor's message a concurrent resolution was adopted, to the effect that the introduction of bills should cease at 10 o'clock a. m. on the 25th; that all messages between the house and senate should be discontinued at noon of the same day, and that the final adjournment should be made at 3 o'clock p. m. The time was found to be too short, however, for the consideration of the various measures proposed, and the final adjournment was not taken until 2 o'clock p. m. on the 26th. Even then the legislature broke all previous records for the amount of business transacted. In the senate 30 bills were introduced, and in the house 59. Of these 89 bills 55 became laws. The most important acts were those authorizing counties to issue bonds to repair the damages done by the flood; permitting county commis- sioners to issue warrants for similar purposes; repealing the act of March 2, 1903, limiting the bonded indebtedness of cities of the first class having a population of 50,000 or more, and allowing cities to issue bonds and warrants to replace bridges, etc.
Attempts to make direct appropriations for the relief of the flood suf- ferers were defeated, but Gov. Bailey called for contributions and in this way raised a fund of some $33,000, over half of which, or $17,500, went to Wyandotte county, where there were 5,000 needy families. Douglas county reported 225 destitute families and received nearly $4,000 ; Leavenworth county received a little over $2,000 for the relief of 115 families, and the balance of the fund was distributed in the coun- ties along the Kansas river from Marshall to Wyandotte.
The second year of Gov. Bailey's administration witnessed the be- ginning of an incident that for a time agitated the state from center to circumference. On Jan. 23, 1904, Joseph R. Burton, United States sena- tor from Kansas, was indicted by a Federal grand jury at St. Louis, Mo., on the charge of having accepted $2,500 from the Rialto Grain and Se- curities company (a "get-rich-quick" concern), of that city, to use his influence with the postoffice department to prevent the issuance of a fraud order against the company, denying it the use of the mails. Bur- ton was tried before Judge Adams of the United States district court at St. Louis in March, found guilty and sentenced to pay a fine of $2,500 and serve six months in the jail at Ironton, Mo. Burton's defense was that he was acting within his rights, and that the money received from the company was nothing more than he was entitled to as attorney's fees. He appealed the case to the United States supreme court, which in Jan., 1905, reversed the decision of the district court, on the grounds that the money was paid to Burton in Washington, and remanded the case for a new trial. The second trial was before Judge Van Devanter of the United States circuit court at St. Louis in Nov., 1905, and re- sulted in the same sentence as that imposed by Judge Adams' court. A second appeal to the supreme court followed, and this time the de-
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cision of the lower court was sustained. On June 4, 1906, Mr. Burton resigned his seat in the Senate.
In the spring of 1904 the cities of Wichita, Hutchinson, Emporia, Coffeyville, Winfield, Ottawa, and all the towns in the Kansas river val- ley, again suffered losses by floods, though the damages were not as heavy as those of the previous year.
On June 4, 1900, a charter was granted to the Kansas Exposition As- sociation of Topeka, with a capital stock of $50,000, which was organ- ized for the purpose of holding a semi-centennial celebration of the organization of Kansas as a territory in 1904. The records do not show what became of the association, but a three days' celebration was held, beginning on Monday, May 30, 1904, which was also Memorial day. On the first day of the celebration there was a great civic and military parade, in which Gov. Bailey and his staff participated, and an address by William H. Taft, secretary of war in President Roosevelt's cabinet. The second day was "Pioneer Day," and was devoted to the relation of experiences by old residents who had lived in Kansas in "the days that tried men's souls." Wednesday was "Women's day," the principal feat- ure of which was a beautiful flower parade.
Sept. 30, 1904, was "Kansas Day" at the Louisiana Purchase exposi- tion at St. Louis. On the 12th Gov. Bailey issued a proclamation an- nouncing that "The management has set apart the week beginning on Sept. 26 as 'Kansas Week' at the World's Fair, and Sept. 30 has been designated as 'Kansas Day,' and it is the most earnest desire of the chief executive and the Kansas commission that as many loyal citizens of our state as possible arrange to attend the fair at that time, and by their presence and influence honor the day and the occasion."
It was estimated that 15,000 Kansans were in attendance on the 30th and nearly every one wore a sunflower, which had but a short time be- fore been declared the state flower by the legislature. Gov. Bailey de- livered an address, descriptive of the resources and progress of Kansas, and the Kansas building was thronged from morning till night with in- terested sight-seers. (See Louisiana Purchase Exposition.)
The political campaign of 1904 was opened by the Republican party, which held a state convention at Wichita on March 9. Edward Hoch was nominated for governor by acclamation ; all the state officers elected in 1902 were renominated; E. W. Cunningham, W. R. Smith and Clark A. Smith were nominated for associate justices of the supreme court; George W. Wheatley, J. W. Robison and A. D. Walker for railroad com- missioners, and Charles F. Scott for Congressman at large. The plat- form paid a tribute to the late Marcus A. Hanna, United States senator from Ohio and chairman of the Republican national committee; de- clared in favor of a primary election law; urged the reapportionment of the state into eight Congressional districts ; favored a public deposi- tory system for the state funds, the "good roads movement," and civil service reform in the state institutions. Delegates to the national con- vention were also selected.
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A Democratic state convention met at Wichita on April 7, selected delegates to the national convention, adopted resolutions reaffirming the national platforms of 1896 and 1900, expressed an appreciation of W. J. Bryan, the presidential candidate in those two campaigns, and indorsed the work of William R. Hearst "in the interests of his party," and com- mended his example "to good Democrats everywhere." No nomina- tions for state officers were made at this convention.
On April 12 a Populist convention assembled at Topeka, and after a stormy session named 89 delegates to the national convention. Wil- liam H. Hearst was recommended to the Democratic party as the choice of the Populists for president, but the fusionists controlled the conven- tion and prevented any nominations from being made.
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