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The Commoner,
v WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER
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Vol. 5. No. 12
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Lincoln, Nebraska, April 7, 1905
ft W J.", I '
Whole Number 22Q
CONTENTS
The Feee and TjNcoiiKurTED Voice op
The People
A False Motto
A Few Questions Answered
Williams Industrial College
Congressman Scudder's Vote
Tolstoy on Government
Taking Hold oe the Towline
Comment in Current Topics
The Primary Pledge '
News of the Week
HOLDING DOWN THE SAFETY VALVE
A FALSE MOTTO
A "civic association,'-"with headquarters in New
' York, is sending out literature on the corporation
side of public questions. At the top 'of its letter
head it has a motto which explains its business in
f politics. It says: "Public ownership waste exceeds
corporate profit." This is a false statement as
mh mw
experience shows, mitit will serve as weir as"' any
other motto for those who are attempting to de
ceive the public by giving their associations high
sounding titles. A reader of The Commoner sends
in two pieces of literature sent out by this civic
association. One is a special dispatch to the New
York Evening Post, which purports to explain the
oil problem in Kansas by saying that there is a
"vast over-production of crude petroleum." The
other piece of literature is a reprint from the Na
tion in which an attempt is made to answer Ida
M. Tarbell's history of the Standard Oil company.
The fact that the literature was sent to a denomi
national college is evidence that the trusts, and
such agents of theirs .as the civic association, are
trying to overcome the influence of the magazine
articles and court investigations.
r
Symptoms of a Great Explosion
The Nearer We Can Get to the Free and Uncorrupted Voice of the
Several years ago a citizen of Iowa boasted
that he never cast a vote, although he was past
fifty years of age. He explained his refusal to
take part in politics'-on the ground that "it is not
clean."
Commenting at the time upon this remarkable
statement, The Commoner said: "Surely there can
not be very many who have so little intelligence as
not to know that the citizen has no right to enjoy
the blessings of free government, unless he is
willing to endure the constant sacrifice for which
it calls. If the Iowa citizen is more honest than
his neighbors he is in duty bound to give his'
country the benefit of his superior integrity and
intelligence. A man might possiWv justify himself
in refusing to vote because he is not good enough,
but no one can refuse to vote on the ground that
he is 'too good.' Sometimes men Jail to vote be
cause their party is in the majority and they think
their vote is not needed; sometimes they fail to
vote because they are in the minority and they
think their vote will do no good; but no excuse is
valid. Public sentiment is gauged by the elections
and every vote has its influence. The stay-at-home
vote is too easily misconstrued. One Ne
braska democrat, for. instance, refused to vote be
cause he wanted to encourage the republicans to
carry their policies to the extremes, believing that
a reaction would be thus produced, and yet the
republican leaders will construe the silence of this
yoter as an. evidence that he is satisfied with ex-
People the Better
isting conditions and with the tendencies of the
policies now being enforced. Between those who
absolutely refuse to vote and those who feel it
their duty to vote are those who are so indifferent
that they will vote if carried to the polls, but
will not vote otherwise. The nearer wo
can get to the free and uncorrupted voice of the
people the better, and compulsory voting would be
a step in that direction."
Important as it is that men participate in the
general elections, it is all the more important that
they take part in the primary elections of their
party.
On the theory that the large majority of men
in all political organizations are good men, no
serious danger would confront this country, so far
as any party's principles are concerned, if all par
ties were controlled by the rank and file, for we
know that too often the policies of parties are
shaped by a handful of men. This has 'been true
because of the neglect of men, having no axes to
grind, to take part in the primary elections of the
political organization with which they affiliate.
Let it be remembered that "the nearer we can
get to the free and uncorrupted Voice of the. peo
ple, the better." We can never reach that point
while we are governed by parties and so long as
the rank and file permit a minority, whoso chief
concern is against the public welfare, to control.
"The free and uncorrupted voice of the peo
ple" must make itself heard through the primary
elections. It Is The Commoner's purpose to im
press this truth particularly upon democrats. It
urges every one, however humble his station wf
life may be, to actively interest himself In the
proceedings incidental to the formation of his
party's policies. It calls upon every democrat to
attend democratic primaries and see to it that
none but faithful democrats are sent to represent
In county, state or national convention those
who must remain at home and to express In true
democratic fashion the "free and uncorrupted
voice of the people."
To this end The Commoner has presented to
its readers the primary pledge plan of organiza
tion. The responses made to this plan by demo
crats In all sections of the country are, indeed,
gratifying. But the work must not be permitted to
lag for a moment. A great contest is on between
those whose concern is for the public welfare and
the handful of men who are interested solely in
their -selfish schemes and the special favors they
obtain under the law and which they are per
mitted, in many cases, to exercise even without
the law.
In this great contest the democratic party will
either be conspicuous by its devotion to the public
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