50
13. A bill authorizing the State to borrow up to three million dollars to meet claims against the State; and finally,
14. A bill defining the grounds upon which the State could take possession of and close banks or trust companies in financial emergencies.

Almost everything except Idaho's constitution appeared to be under consideration in this legislative session. Unfortunately, we have limited record of Senator Clark's participation and voting in these deliberations. [Wait! Contrast JRC 1976 essay: "his name is on nearly every page of the legislative minutes as having something to say germane to the matters at hand."]  One reason for knowing far less about his politicking than one would like is that

"In those days, Idaho was still a frontier with its lifeblood coming largely from its mining industry, and the voting public was not very concerned with what the legislature was doing or whether it kept effective records."

^{- John Robert Cluff, a Clark family friend, 1962.}

“Bishop” Clark lost the election to the Senate in 1928—his last political campaign—because he wanted to prevent moving the County seat from Paris to Montpelier, an issue of major importance to Bear Lake County at that time.

"Another reason for losing the election to incumbent Senator John Ole Transtrum was that Father had voted to extend the number of freight cars allowed for an engine to pull at one time. The limit had been fifty, and when Father wanted to raise this to one hundred cars, his electorate—with a significant number of railroad families—did not take kindly to his economy."

^{- Homer K. Clark, seventh child of Wilford and Pamelia, 1963.}

The overall legislative record of Senator-Representative Clark might appear, at times, to be one of obstructing what has come to be known as “social progress,” or liberal movements that usually eventuate in larger government and less local responsibility. We must recognize that Wilford W. Clark belonged to an era when a rural state, anxious for more prominence among its sister states, frequently adopted measures from those states that were