ffr ? ( The Commoner. VOLUME 9, NUMBER 23 4 The Commoner. 1SSUETD WEEKLY. WlIXIAM J. llnYAK Kdllornml Proprietor. HICHAM) I Mktcai.fk Arrecluto Editor. CiunutB W. Hryam Fubltohw. Kditorlnl noomn nd Buiinew OfHco 324-SSO fiouth 12th Street Frlrinl tl tlic Teuton cc ot IJnroln, Nfb.. rrcond-cHM matter . J85 Ore Yar Sl.CO a lirco Months- - HiTVIrnilli. CO Single Copy - 3i tUM oi Five or more. FampleCoplwFrccw rrYrnr - - - f5 Forclun rotlnycta OnlnHxtut flUIISCIlll'TIONS can bo sent glroctto 2JJ5 monor. They can also bo sent trough owMMPera which have advertised a clubbing rato, or tnrouj Jocil aSSJt., whore sub-asontB have been appohjt cd. All romlttancen should bo sont .by $0tm; money order, express order, or JWjft ffrVdu-S Now York or Chicago. Do not Bend Individual chockfi, ntampn or money. .. DISCONTINUANCES It Is found that a majority of our subscrlbora prefer not to navo their Bubscrlptlons interrupted and their: niea broken In caao thoy fall to remit boforo oxplratlon. It la thoroforo asBumod that continuance is desiroa unless Hubscribora order discontinuance, rttnOT whon Bubacrlblng or at any timo during the J ear. Presentation Coplos: Many persons subscribe tor friends, intending that the paper shall stop at tn nd of the year. If instructions aro given to tnac fleet thoy will Tocclvo attention at tho proper itlDNEWAIiS Tho date on your wrapper snowj tlhe timo to which your subscription is paid. Thus January 81, 08. means that payment has been re ceived to and including tho Taut Ibbuo of January. 1908. Two woeks aro required after money nas been received before tho date on wrapper can D changed. ., CIIANGID OF ADDRESS Subscribers requesting a chango of address must give OLD as well as NEW , address. ADVERTISING Rates furnished upon applica tion. Address all communications to THE COMMONER, Lincoln, Nob. Mr. Nagle seems to have Director of the Census North going south. Anything familiar ahout those declarations from tho heart of the African jungles? If tho tariff is to he revised downward thero wiil hlivo to bo an awful slump pretty soon. '-'My policies" seem to bo getting it in just about tho same place no thoeo South African lions. Some of the speeches that have been made in favor of the lumber tax have the odor of pine forests. Thero are some hides on the freo list tho consumers', for Instance. Everybody takes a whack at them. The Roosevelt game bag in three woeks con tains more slain lions than it did slain trusts after seven years of furious trust "busting." A now constitution has been promulgated in Turkey, but the chances are that in a year or two it will bo shot as full of holes as another constitution we know about. An eastern paper declares that New England Js investing $54,000,000 in new mills and fac tories. It is barely possible that a goodly por tion of this immense sum is being invested in probable tariff schedules. An Iowa man whoso eyesight is failing has beon. sentenced to a term in the penitentiary and is rejoicing at the thought that state treat ment may save his eyes. Ho will not be the first man who has gained a new point of view by serving a sentence. Admiral Taussig has abolished the "9 o'clock evening gun" at the Portsmouth navy yard, ex plaining that it wakened the navy yard babies. Portsmouth people protested, but the admiral stood pat. Tho man who stands by tho babies Is a pretty good man to depend upon in timo of need. One of the democratic senators tried to just ify his refusal to be bound by tho free lumber plank of tho democratic platform by saying that it was made by a handful of men at mid-night. But he neglected to say it was ratified by a national convention and supported by 6,400,000 voters. He also neglected tho handful of pine land owners who furnish the platform which he does consider binding. THE TARIFF IN THE SENATE Defending his course In repudiating . the dem ocratic national platform Senator Bailey, speak ing in tho senate, said: "Tho convention goes to the full extent or its authority when it names a candidate and adopts a platform declaring the principle of the party. That has been generally accepted by men of all parties, and this acceptance has found a very distinguished exemplification in the gentleman who now criticises the democrats and whose criticism the senator from Missouri has echoed. "In 1892 the national platform expressly and emphatically declared without reserve or qualification in favor of a law to repeal the tax of 10 per cent on the issue of state banks the tax of 10 per cent on institutions which put out tho notes of state banks, which was in effect, the same thing. At that time there sat in the house of representatives William J. Bryan, rep resenting a Nebraska district, and, when the democratic party in the house of representatives attempted to fulfill tho pledge of the national convention, Mr. Bryan refused to be bound by it, and voted against that specific, direct and positive pledge which the democratic party had made to the people of the United States and on which it had won a great triumph. "I have no criticism to make of him, further than to repeat against him and his friends, tho criticism against us in which they now indulge. "You will find, upon an examination of the record, that Mr. Bryan not only refused to be bound by that declaration, but asserted the doctrine that a congressional district had the power to bind its representative against the authority of the party in national convention assembled; and, although Mr. Bryan voted and spoke against tho redemption of that pledge, he has been three times nominated by the dem ocratic party since then for the presidency of the United States. "Mr. President, to illustrate the folly of al lowing a convention to instruct legislators as to details, I only need to call attention to the fact that that platform pledged us to put logs on the free list, when logs were already on ther free list. Obviously, they did not know what it was necessary to do, and I do not think they knew what ought to be done." Following are extracts from the report of one day's proceedings in the senate: Senator Nelson W. Aldrich "got a rise" out of Senator Beveridge of Indiana by expressing to the senate his pleasure and encouragement over the fact that the Indiana senator seemed inclined to support an amendment of the senate committee on finance regarding the duty on window shades. "Of course," said Senator Aid rich, "he has never quite gone far enough with us to vote with us, but I still hope he may vote with the committee soon." "I am sorry the senator made that remark," said Senator Beveridge. "I know it is true of himself, and I believe it of every other senator here, that we prefer to vote with the finance committee if it is possible to do so. No senator, however, can afford to vote with the committee when the facts upon which its position is based are wrong. Neither the judgment nor the con science of any senator will permit him to do that. I do not think the senator from Rhode Island or anybody else has a right under these circumstances to administer a rebuke or make an appeal." Later in the debate, Senator Aldrich "got back" at Senator Beveridge, following a long colloquy -with Senators Dolliyer and Beveridge as to what credence should "be given evidence on the tariff schedules. Senator Aldrich had announced his unwavering allegiance to the testimony of American manufacturers as against all others, while Senator Beveridge cited the testimony of an admitted representative of the cotton industry who had declared himself sat isfied with the old Dingley cotton rates. In the course of his remarks, Senator Beveridge inti mated that protective duties were added to the price paid by consumers, which sentiment Sen ator Aldrich hastily grasped. "This speech shows the dangers of associa tion," he began. "I have heard that sort of ar speech from democrats; rarely from republi cans, and never from protectionist republicans. All the privates in this controversy seem to be on tho democratic side, while all the brigadiors are over here." "They think thoy are over there," interpolated Senator Bailey. "A free-trade tariff reformer would have used the precise language of the senator from In diana," continued Senator Aldrich. "Those who would destroy the whole system of the protec- tive tariff would say that the. cost to the con sumer was increased by the amount: of protec tion given. So far as I am concerned the in terests represented by the manufacturers of this country will continue to have more weight with me than those of the importers, who, while thoy are Americans, serve, nevertheless, intercrs which aro not American." Tariff reformers were greatly encouraged when in a speech delivered in Chicago Sat"r day night, Secretary of the Treasury MacVeah advocated tariff revision downward. Mr. Mac Veagh's speech was interpreted as meaning a warning from President Taft. Later, however, an Associated Press dispatch announced that Speaker Cannon, Senator Aldrich and Repre sentative Payne had had many conferences with Mr. Taft, and had been assured by him that he would not veto the tariff bill. Another Washington dispatch states authoritatively that Secretary MacVeagh's speech had not been read by Mr. Taft before it was delivered, and that Mr. MacVeagh did not reflect 'Mr. Taf t's senti ments on the tariff question. The following are the extracts from one day's proceedings: During an acrid colloquy between the senators from Wyoming and Wisconsin, Mr. Warren asked what had been the net result of the efforts of the Wisconsin senator in enlightening con gress on "the interests they were serving." This inquiry followed a declaration by Mr. LaFollette, in which he said: "I want to be lieve that there aTe men on this floor who do not know the interests they are serving." Asked as to the results of his campaign of enlightenment, Mr. LaFollette, showing much Seeling, said: "They have been pretty good. When I came here I stood alone, and now thero are a dozen who stand with me." The gavel of the presiding officer kept time ' with applause in the galleries. Order was re stored and Mr. LaFollette continued: "And the results will be better, let me tell the senator from Wyoming. The lines will be broken not only in the middle and the extreme west, but in the east as well. I think I know what I am talking about.'' Senator Culberson in a statement to the pub lic called attention to the democratic attitude in relation to an income tax. He said: "At the beginning of the discussion of tho tariff at this session, the democrats met twice in conference and the tariff generally, as well as an income tax, was fully discussed. There was comparatively a full attendance and the decision was unanimous upon the subject. While no formal resolution was adopted or agreement entered into, it was formally agreed to support the income tax amendment which had been prepared by Senator Bailey, and was to be introduced by him. So far as I know or believe there has been no change in sentiment and I have no doubt, therefore, that all demo crats will support the amendment and will in sist upon a prompt disposition of it tomorrow." LaFollette and Aldrich clashed in the senate when it came to the amendment of the wool schedule. In this Aldrich had his way as usual, and the twenty-four amendments offered by the Wisconsin senator were defeated by a vote ofi 32 to 44. Following are extracts from the As sociated Press reports: "I would like to know," said the senator from! Rhode Island, "how my friend from In diana' (Mr. Beveridge) and my friend from Iowa (Mr. Cummins) will explain their votes in reducing the protection which probably afford ed the wool growers of the United States, 40 and 50 per cent, by their action in this matter." "It will keep us much busier," interposed Mr. Clapp, "in explaining somebody's else votes." This declaration called forth applause from the galleries, which was quickly suppressed by Vice President Sherman. "My votes need no explanation," responded Mr. Aldrich, "either to myself or to my constituents to whom I am di Tectly responsible." As he was speaking-, Mr. Aldrich produced s telegram which he had just received, quoting tho Liverpool price' of merinos at 13 cents. That, ho said, would mean a duty of 6 centg a pound on. these merinos, the woolen goods that come more severely in competition with those of the United States than others. No sooner had Mr. Aldrich taken his seat, than Mr. LaFollette was upon his feet. "That statement of the senator from Rhode Island," he said with impetuous language, "is an im peachment of the leadership of the senator from Rhode Island. The want of confidence which has come to some republican members in this body would find justification in his course hera