WYOMING 935 



Congress in 1883-89 and was chosen in 1907 for the unexpired term of John Coit Spooner 

 (b. 1843; Republican; senator, 1885-91 and 1897-1907), who resigned. Stephenson 

 was re-elected irt 1909 for the term ending 1915, but it was charged that his election 

 was secured by corruption. La Toilette's followers were hostile to Stephenson, although 

 the latter had been a patron of La Follette in his early career; and the state legislature 

 of 1911 urged the investigation of the charges against him. The United States Senate 

 ordered an investigation on August 12, 1911, and on February 10, 1912 its special 

 committee exonerated him, although it found that he had spent $100,000 for his election. 

 The Senate adopted this report by a vote of 40 to 34, March 27, 1912. 



In the state campaign there was no separate Progressive ticket, but the Progressives 

 supported Francis Edward McGovern (b. 1866), governor in 1911-1 3, renominated at the 

 Republican primaries (September 3) and re-elected. His Democratic opponent was Judge 

 John C. Karel, chosen in the primaries (48,238 to 36,975) over Adolph J. Schmitz, 

 who had Bryan's backing and favoured the state income-tax law, which Karel dis- 

 approved. Karel received 167,316 votes; McGovern, 179,360. The next legislature 

 will be Republican by a small margin in each house. There will be one Socialist in 

 the senate (elected in 1910) and 6 Socialists in the lower house, elected in 1912. Wood- 

 row Wilson carried the state, receiving 164,228 votes to 130,695 for Taft, 62,460 for 

 Roosevelt, 33,481 for Debs (who had 28,170 in 1908) and 8, 526 for Chafm. The com- 

 paratively small vote for Roosevelt was due in part to La Follette's attitude toward 

 him and in part to the conservatism of the Scandinavian voters of the state. The 

 Socialist vote, though absolutely large, was comparatively small, and Victor L. Berger 

 (b. 1860), representative in 1911-13 from the 5th district (and the first Socialist to sit 

 in the Federal House of Representatives), was not re-elected. There was a complete 

 re-districting of the state, although the Congressional apportionment was unchanged, 

 apparently in an effort to confine the Socialist strength to one district; and Republicans 

 and Democrats united in a non-partisan nomination against the Socialists in two dis- 

 tricts in Milwaukee county, where, although the McGovern Republicans made a third 

 nomination, three non-partisan state senators and 13 non-partisan assemblymen 

 (out of 19) and the two non-partisan nominees for Congress were elected. The rest 

 of the state chose 3 Democrats and 6 Republicans as representatives in Congress. The 

 Socialists in Milwaukee had suffered a defeat in April 1911, partly losing control of the 

 city, and this loss was increased in November. 



The commission form of government was adopted in Janesville (January 23, 1912 

 and in Menomonie (January 29) and went into effect in each city on April 16, 1912. 

 Portage, Rice Lake (February 6; 451 to 165; in effect April 23) and Superior (January 

 23; 1,591 to 1,390; in effect April 23) also adopted the commission government in 1912. 



Bibliography. Session Laws, IQII and 1912, 2 vols. (Madison); J. B. Winslow, The Story 

 of a Great Court, the state supreme court (1912); F. C. Howe, Wisconsin: An Experiment 

 in Democracy (1912); C. M. McCarthy, The Wisconsin Idea (1912); Charles B. Cory, The 



Mammals of Illinois and Wisconsin (1912). 



WYOMING. 1 



Population (1910) 145,965; an increase of 57.7% since 1900. Density 1.5 to the sq. 

 m. Foreign-born whites were 18.6% of the total (17.9% in 1900); native whites of 

 native parentage 55.3% (51.8% in 1900). In 7 places, each with more than 2,500 

 inhabitants, there was 29.6% of the total (28.8% in 3 such places in 1900). The 

 purely rural population was 55.1% (57.4% in 1900). Incorporated places of 2,000 

 or more were: Cheyenne, 11,320; Sheridan, 8,408 (1,559 * n JQ 00 ); Laramie, 8,237; 

 Rock Springs, 5,778; Rawlins, 4,256; Casper (town), 2,639 (883 in 1900); Evanston 

 (town), 2,583; Douglas (town), 2,246 (734 in 1900). 



Agriculture. The acreage in farms increased from 8,124,536 to 8,543,010 between 1900 

 and 1910, and the improved land in farms from 792,332 to 1,256,160; the average farm acreage 

 fell from 1,333.0 10777.6 and the value of farm property increased from $67,477,407 to 8167,- 

 189,081 (888,908,276 land; $9,007,001 buildings; 3,668,294 implements; 65,605,510 domestic 



1 See E. B. xxviii, 873 el seq. 



