The Commoner.
H
Vol. a, No. 39.
THE WEEKLY PRESS FORUM.
MR. MITCHELL IS OBDURATE
i-tx
Scott City (Kaa.) Chronicle: The
president's attitude toward the trust
question is growing milder and mildor
as tirao goos on. Ho already thinks
if ho had the powor ho would bo very,
very cautious about shackling cun
ning lost ho crlpplo its power to do
good. Just notice tho soothing effect
Teddy's demeanor is having on tho
trust magnates.
Fairbury (Nob.) Journal: President
Roosevelt is quite positive that tho
trust ovil cannot bo dealt with with
out a constitutional amendment, but
ho believes tho powers of congress aro
unlimited when it comes to dealing
with tho Philippines. Tho president's
constitution interpreter is on back
wards. Algona (la.) Courier: There is no
doubt that tho withdrawal of Speaker
Henderson is primarily due to Gov
, ornor Cummins and his insurgent fac
. tion. They put tho "shelter" plank in
to their platform last year and again
this year, thus developing tho anti
tariff sentiment and making it unpleas
ant and unsafo for Henderson.
Lamar (Mo.) Dispatch: Tho presi
dent says that publicity might prove
quite an offective remedy against tho
in6fn tfrif nn tviflnnf l-n lift rlnocirt't
vi..' tW if wnnlrt An nnv irood. Congressman Cornelius A. Pugsloy
Then again to thinks thoro are many J" "n?lnliLCOnSreSL5y !
good trusts that ought not be dis-
tho republicans of his district aro op
posed to a further continuation of a
trust-breeding and trust-protecting tar
iff. 1 his is a rift in tho clouds, and is
ovidonco that at last tho light is break
ing. Hastings (Nob.) Republican: Trust
monopoly would not bo possible if it
was not for the fostoring policy of tho
DIngley law. This fact is now becom
ing generally understood that tho
Dingloy law is destructive of health
ful business, of individual enterprise,
and of progressive and enduring condi
tions in our economic and industrial
life. Tho Dingloy law takes prosperity
from tho many for tho enrichment of
tho few. Tho great slogan from this on
should bo "Equal rights to all, special
privileges to none." Not for years has
tno democratic party been in so strong
an argumentative and aggressive a po
sition to battle for tho people's indus
trial and commercial rights.
John Mitchell, president of tho coal
workers, has refused to comply with
tho appeal of President ftbosevolt to
call tho strike off. His letter to tho
president, which was made public at
tho Whito house on October 4, says the
responsibility for tho continuation of
tho strike should bo placed upon those
who have refused arbitration. The text
of tho communication follows:
"Wilkesbarre, Pa., Oct. 8, 1902. To
Theodore Roosevelt, President of the
United States, Washington. Dear Sir:
Carroll D. Wright has, no doubt, re
ported to you the delivery of your
message to me last Monday and my
statement to him that I should take
your suggestion under advisement, al
though I did not look upon it with
favor. Since that time I have con
sulted with our district presidents, who
concur fully in my views. Wo desire
to assure you again that we feel keen
ly the responsibility of our position
and the gravity of tho situation, and it
W,V.ViYY,YVrV
1 7n the Tkld of Politics.
mmMwmmmNmmwmmNmMmmmNUMmNmwmMMtmm
democratic convention of the new
turbed. No wonder the trust mag
nates aro scared to death.
White County (111.) Chronicle: In
stentorian tones every republican ora
tor of 1900 shouted that "tho republi
can party could be depended on to
deal with tho trusts." In the light of
more recent events we are inclined to
think they were confused in their
phraseology. They should havo said,
"Deal to tho trusts."
Tiffin (O.) Advertiser: If the Hanna
organs think they can answer Tom
Johnson's arguments by abusing him
they will discover that they are great
ly mistaken. They may call him hard
names and laugh at his "circus," but
they will never attempt to answer his
cogent and truthful statements. Equal
taxation is what tho people demand,
and by their votes they can have it
Vincennes (Ind.) Sun: Republican
prosperity has become so rank .that
tho secretary of the treasury is losing
, sleep and makea trips over to Wall
' street, Now York, and having advised
with tho Gotham bankers and trust
Nineteenth district of New York
It is reported that the democratic
congressional convention of the Eigh
teenth district of Ohio selected Mayor
Foley of East Palestine as candidate
for congress. Thomas Duffy of East
Liverpool, who was nominated at tho
recent convention, declined the nomination.
J. C. Provost of Teller county has
been selected as the socialist candi
date for governor of Colorado in place
of Edward Boyce, former president
of the western federation of miners
who refused the nomination.
Rov. Charles M. Sheldon, of literary
fame, has filed with tho secretary of
state of Kansas a formal declination
of tho nomination for congressman-at-large
on tho allied populist ticket Mr.
Sheldon had previously refused tho
nomination.
dealing with monopolists "who compel
tho payment of extortionate prices by
the helpless public."
On October 8 the democrats of the
Fifteenth. New York district nominated
Henry P. Martin for congress. In the
Thirteenth district, Francis P. Bur
ton Harrison, democrat, was nomi
nated, while the renubl leans of tlie
.-. . . . - w ,, . ..- -i .. .
Sixteenth district nominated William r and wo leei that tne onus or tnis ter
R, Spoonor.
Winston Churchill, tho novelist, Is
going into politics, making his en
trance at Cornish. N. H.. throueh the
magnates released about thirty mil- medium of the republican representar
uve caucus, wnich gave him a nomina-
lion dollars from the United States
treasury to prevent a money panic.
Thoro is a sort of prosperity that with
ers like a frost, all that it touches.
May field (Ky.) Mirror: What have
tho republicans done to curb the
trusts? Simply nothing. True, the
president made a junket over the coun
try and dished out a joblot of bun
' combo intended to fool the people, but
the people know that with a clear ma
jority in both houses of congress and
tho presidency would have been a very
propitious time to havo choked off this
offspring of republicanism.
Paris (Ky.) Democrat: The warfare
of the democracy 1b a warfare of the
many against the few, and all who op
pose tho policy of greed and oppres
sion and are willing to stand by tho
people in the unequal struggle with
tho trusts and consolidated wealth,
will find the democratic party tho only
party which can save the country from
tho threatened rule and evils of plu
tocracy. Greenville (111.) Item: The republi
can party is panic-stricken at the ac
tion of Speaker Henderson in with
drawing from the race for re-election
to congress and frankly admitting that
The formal opening of the political
campaign in Nebraska took place at
Falls City, Neb., on October 8, when
W. J. Bryan and Hon. H. H. Hanks,
candidate for congress from the First
district, conducted a meeting. Mr.
Bran discussed the political issues of
the day before a large audience. This
inarkec the opening of an active cam
paign which will continue until No
vember, and the prospects for a fusion
victory are very bright.
would give us great pleasure to take
any action which would bring this coal
strike to an end in a manner that
would safeguard tho interests of our
constituents.
"In proposing that there bo an im
mediate resumption of coal mining
upon tho conditions we suggested in
the conference at tho White house we
believed that we had gone more than
half way and had met your wishes. It
is unnecessary in this letter to refer
to tho malicious assault made upon us
in the response of the coal operators.
We feel confident that you must have
been impressed with tho fairness of
our proposition and the insincerity of
those who maligned us.
"Having in mind our experience with
the coal operators in the past we havo
no reason to feel any degree of con
fidence in their willingness to do us
justice in the future, and inasmuch as
they have refused to accept the deci
sion of a tribunal selected by you,
and inasmuch, as there is no law
through which you could enforce the
findings of the commission you sug
gest, wo respectfully decline to ad
vise our people to return to work sim
ply upon the hope that the coal opera
tors might be induced or forced to
comply with tho recommendations of
your commission.
"As stated above, we believe that
we went more than 'half way in our
proposal at Washington, and we do not
feel that wo should be asked to make
further sacrifice. We appreciate your
solicitude for the people of our coun
try who are now and will be subjected
to great suffering and inconvenience
by a prolongation of the coal strike,
riblo state of affairs should be placed
upon tho side "which has refused' to re
fer to fair and impartial investiga
tion. I am, respectfully,
"JOHN MITCHELL,
"President U. M. W. of A.
On October 9 W. M. Carpenter of
Stuttgart, Ark., was nominated for
congress by the Sixth district republi
can convention of Arkansas.
tion. This is considered equivalent to
an election.
Mayor D. L. Grantner of Providence,
R. I., has declined the nomination for
congress received at the First district
democratic convention.
The republican convention of the
Ninth district of New York nominated
Charles S. Adler on October 7. Dr.
A. J. Anderson of Long Island City
was nominated by the republicans of
tho Fourteenth congressional district
in tho same day.
The republicans of the Third Texas
district have nominated J. W. Yates
of Gregg county for congress.
A Providence, R. I., dispatch of Oc
tober 9 says: In a short session today
the republican state convention nomi
nated the following ticket: Governor,
Charles Dean Kimball, Providence;
lieutenant governor, George L. Shop
ley; secretary of state, Charles P.
Bennett; attorney general, Charles F.
Stearns, Providence; general treasurer,
Walter A. Read, Gloucester. The
nominations for congress were: First
district, Melville Bull, Newport; Sec
ond district, Adam P. Capron, Smith-field.
William Randolph Hearst, who was
recently nominated by tho democrats
of the Eleventh New York district for
congress, on October 6 in his speech ac
cepting tho nomination announced
himself as in favor of public owner
ship of certain public utilities, specify
ing as a natural beginning railroads
and telegraphs. "Existing conditions,"
ho declared, "make it advisable for the
government to take possession of and
manage the anthracite coal mines for
tho people's benefit" Ho favored the
election of United States senators by
popular vote as a means to the end of
A dispatch from Madison, Wis., on
October 10, reports that Secretary of
the Navy Moody, addressing the re
publicans at Madison, Wis., declared
that the duty of 67 cents a ton on an
thracite coal "was smuggled into the
tariff act in a sneaking and cowardly
manner," and ought to bo repealed at
tho short session of congress. He
declared that the president could not
constitutionally send troops into the
coal regions without a, call from the
Pennsylvania authorities, nor could
ho seize the anthracite lands by tho ex
orcise of eminent domain.
STATErtENT TO THE PRESS.
Wilkesbarre, Pa., Oct. 6. To dis
trict secretaries and all' mine workers
in the anthracite field:
You have, no doubt, read in tho
daily papers tho proceedings of the
conference at the White house last
xTiday in which your officers proposed
an immediate resumption of work if
the operators would agree with us to
refer the questions at issue in the
striko to the decision of the president
of the United States and a tribunal
named by him. You have noted the
reply of the presidents of the coal
carrying roads, in which they respond
ed to our overtures by denouncing
your union, iffs members and officers
in the most vehement and malicious
manner possible. They also declared
that a largo majority of the strikers
would return to work if given mili
tary protection and they demanded
that the president send United States
troops to the coal fields.
In order to demonstrate to the peo
ple of our country that the statements
of the operators aro unfounded, and
that the mine workers aro law-abiding
citizens, the officers of all local
unions shoulu call mass meetings of
all men on strike, union and non
union, such meetings to be held iu
each mining town at 2 o'clock Wed
nesday afternoon, October 8. We
know that the mine workers are not
restrained from going to work by
fear of bodily harm; and if this is the
sentiment prevailing at the meetings,
resolutions should bo adopted em
phatically declaring the statements of
tls operators to be untrue.
We also advise that acts of lawless
ness by tho coal and iron police and
by strikers bo denounced and the ser
vices of members of the unjon tend-
,
m1BMk,L
I Hflri-fcrnfrny :3