[Small Archive of Original Manuscripts, Including a Draft Platform for the Socialist Party of Kansas in the 1926 Elections] by [Kansas]. [Socialism]. Bridwell, Arthur - 1926

[Baldwin, Ks, 1926. Very good.. Five items, either manuscript or typed, totaling approximately [35]pp. Occasional browning, soil and edgewear, but in generally good or better, legible condition; one item possibly incomplete. Small but notable collection of papers relating to Arthur Bridwell (ca. 1874-1966), newspaperman, professional photographer, amateur naturalist and prominent socialist of Baldwin City, Kansas. Though born in Indiana, Bridwell appears to have spent nearly his entire life in Baldwin City, and graduated from Baker University around 1900. In the first decade of the 20th century his by-line appears on several articles in the Baldwin Republican, but by 1906 he is advertising his services as a photographer of views and portraits. Though apparently never elected, Baldwin was a sometime candidate for statewide political office on the Socialist ticket, running once for the state legislature (1916) and twice for state auditor (1922 and 1924).

Of particular interest here is Bridwell's lengthy and detailed draft platform for the Kansas Socialist Party in the elections of 1926, present in both a rough manuscript draft and in a more finished, typed version. Contemporary newspaper accounts confirm that Bridwell's platform was in fact submitted to the Kansas Secretary of State for that year's elections, along with candidates for nine statewide offices, though there is no mention of Bridwell's position within the party at this time (newspaper articles identify him only as a former faculty member of Baker College).

Bridwell's platform, in twelve points, offers a strident indictment of Capitalism, beginning with a somewhat breathless preamble: "Realizing that the evils of capitalism are inherent and can only be eradicated by the complete socialization of the world, the socialist party calls attention to the break down of capitalism during the World War and the suspension of credit since, which has disorganized society, thrown millions out of employment and created a condition where famine and pestilence stalk the earth and industrial strikes have replaced peaceful production." Specific proposals presented in the platform include the state takeover of agriculture and industry, banking, and insurance; the establishment of a state-run newspaper; establishment of referendum and recall procedures for state officials; a public school system guaranteeing a free education for every citizen "irrespective of age, color, race or sex;" a revised tax code, and a call for an immediate constitutional convention "for the purpose of changing the state constitution which entrenched monetary interests have made practically impossible of amendment."

Other pieces included here include two rather amateurish creative works -- a brief supernatural tale titled "Prof. Wilkins' Ghost," and the narrative of a fishing trip on horseback to Horseshoe Lake, near Lawrence, which Bridwell describes as "rather a disappointment." Also present is an original signed contract, 1910, for a partnership with one C.D. Spangler, establishing a photographic business in Baldwin (according to contemporary newspaper accounts, this partnership was dissolved later in the same year, with Bridwell assuming ownership of all fixtures and assets).

A more detailed assessment of each document is as follows:

1) "Suggestive Platform by AB." Manuscript draft of the Kansas Socialist Party Platform for 1926. [7]pp. on 6 sheets, in ink and pencil, with many emendations and editorial markings. 

2) "A Tentative platform written and submitted by Arthur Bridwell, Baldwin." Typed, finished draft of the above document. [4]pp., typed, reproduced by spirit duplication.

3) Partnership contract between Arthur Bridwell and C.D. Spangler for the formation of a photographic studio in Baldwin, Kansas. Dated 1910. [2]pp., typed, reproduced by spirit duplication on Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity of Baker University letterhead. Signed in ink by both parties, countersigned by A.M. Gardner and W.H. Hobbs.
 
4) "Prof. Wilkins' Ghost." Manuscript draft of a short story. On nine half-sheets of "Baldwin Republican" letterhead. Substantially complete, but possibly lacking a concluding page or paragraph.

5) "A Trip To Horseshoe Lake." Manuscript draft of a travel account. [14]pp. on lined stationery printed with masthead of "Office of the Curio Shop; Arthur Bridwell." Dated 1907, apparently complete.  

Together, these documents offer a fascinating glimpse into the rather homespun nature of socialist activism in the agricultural west in the years before the Great Depression. Bridwell, clearly neither a professional politician nor a theorist, and at best an amateur writer, nonetheless appears to have been a major voice in Kansas politics, even defining statewide policy for a (then) major third party. Portions of Bridwell's papers are held at both the Kansas Historical Society and in the Special Collections and Archives at Baker University, but the current documents appear to be unique.