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The Commoner.
volume 11, number h
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tho democrats enjoyed what they hoard. They
hoard Mr. Taft Bay that if this reciprocity agree
ment was not indorsed, that it meant the death
knell of tho protective system, and they heard
Mr. Dalzoll of Pennsylvania reason that if this
was adopted that it meant the death knell of
protection, and then for the first time the demo
crats felt that thoy were in a position to laugh
no matter what happened.
"My friends, both of these men were right.
It does not matter what they do to reciprocity,
it is tho death blow to protection, and wo demo
crats are In a position that wo have never been
In beforo on tho tariff. If this reciprocity agree
ment is defeated, what does it mean? It means
that tho republican party is not willing to have
any breach made in tho tariff wall and that
moans that every man who revolts against it in
tho republican party must look for help in the
democratic party and not tho republican. But
suppose you pass a reciprocity agreement rati
fying It, then what? It means that you began
to make breaches in the wall, and the moment
you begin you start tho people back of it in
a fight among thomselves, and already wo see
the results of this fight.
"When they asked mo if I favored reciprocity,
I said yes. They said why, what good dbes it
do? I said it does not matter whether it does
much good or not. It is a beginning and a be
ginning is half tho battle. Let them start, I am
so anxious to have something done that I don't
insist that tho beginning shall bo made in this
particular place or that one. The trouble is
that a great many men who talk tariff reduc
tion have been a little like the fellow who sub
scribed for every church that was proposed in
tho town and fought tho location in hopes of
preventing tho building of the church.
"So we have had somo peoplo talking about
tariff reduction and they talked about something
hero and if they could not get it hero they didn't
want it anywhere else. I want tho tariff reduc
tion bo bad that you can start any where with
out my saying halt. Tho difficulty is when a .
mnn has his heart on protecting somebody ho
is not in a position to help reduce tho tariff any
whore.
, "If you will, pardon a story that I heard twenty-three
years ago and that I have been telling
over sinco and I may have told it at this banquet
table a half dozen times for all I know: A man
went into a clothing store and when the mer
chant was not looking he picked up a coat. sinU
ran oil witn it. a no ran away tho merchant
halloed 'Stop,' but ho didn't stop; then the
policeman called him to stop, but he didn't stop,
and then the policeman pulled out his revolver,
when the merchant became excited and grabbed
tho policeman and said, 'If you do shoot, shoot
him in the pants, tho coat belongs to me.'
"What chance have you of shooting a thief
if you are afraid to shoot for fear you will hit '
some garment of yours that he has on? That
is the difficulty today with the advocates of pro
tection, and so while they want protection still
they want any tariff reform that they can get
that does not interfero with protection. The
trouble is that they have their hearts set on pro
tecting something and they are afraid of reduc
ing tho tariff on ono thing for fear it will re
sult in reducing it on the things that are dear
to their heart. But today, my friends, you will
find most of the people interested in tariff re
duction and a great majority of the peoplo are
not afraid to shoot at this tariff thief who has
nothing on that belongs to them, and you can't
scare them by telling them that they are going
to be hurt, for they have been hurt so bad with
tho tariff that they are not afraid of being hurt
by some of it being taken off. The most of them
have come to the same conclusion as tho man
who does his sleeping on the floor when you
tell him he is going to fall off the bed. He says
'You can't scare me.' So most of the people
the farmers especially, are not afraid of having
a little tariff taken off. One reason that I favor
reciprocity is that whether it pulls the tariff
wall down or not, it does pull tho wool off of
the farmors' eyes that the republican party has
put on them.
Mr. Bryan declared that the success of the
democratic party in tho last election and in
senatorial elections by legislatures this winter
far exceeded his fondest hopes. Ho enumerated
tho governors elected by democrats in renubli-
can states last fall.
It was in this connection that he paid tribute
to Governor Woodrow Wilson, which made the
iatter's friends who are booming him for nresi
dent, sit up and take notice.
"Governor Wilson in New Jersey has already
given us some indication of what he believes
in," said Mr. Bryan, "and he has been battling
there from tho time he camo into office up to
the present time for the things that are demo
cratic. When the legislature met he began to
send out messages asking them to carry out
democratic ideas. He asked for an election law
and a primary law and ho put behind those de
mands the strength of his strong personality.
Ho sent a message asking for tho indorsement
of tho income tax or ratification of the income
tax, and when ono house indorsed it and the
other rejected it, ho sent a second message to
the senate and appealed to them to reverse their
decision and indorse it and give the federal
government power to collect the income tax. I
speak of these as some of the things that have
been dono and in some of the states where we
were not expecting to win such victories."
He was unstinted in his praise of Speaker
Champ Clark of the house. He said that he had
known him for eighteen years and had watched
his growth from a lawyer in a small community
to a leader in the house of representatives, to
a position now which is second in power and
importance only to the presidency itself. In
selecting Champ Clark for their speaker, the
democrats of the house made no mistake, he
declared.
"Champ Clark deserves a place in history be
cause he had it in his power to take the speaker
ship with all the power that Cannon had," said
Mr. Bryan, "but he preferred to take a demo
cratic speakership with less power, rather than
a republican speakership with more power."
He characterized the free list bill prepared
by the democrats in congress as a democratic
move to give the farmers a chance, that it can
not be said that the Canadian agreement puts
cattle on the free list and leaves a tariff on
meat, and similar provisions with which fault
is found.
"So we prepared the farmers' free list and
we put 100 articles upon it and what were
they?" said Mr. Bryan. "We put flour on the
free list so he could not say he had free wheat
and a tax on flour. We put meat on the free
list so he could not say free cattle, but a tax
on meat. We put boots and shoes and harness
and saddles and leather, agricultural imple
ments, and barbed wire and cotton bagging and
cotton lies and 100 things that the farmers used
on the free list, and if you go to "Washington
now you will see the republicans sweating blood
to Imrvw what thoy aro ffoins to do now.
"I say to you that the farmers' freo list is
the best strategical movement that has been
made in twenty-five years. It was mode pos
sible by the reciprocity agreement. But for
that agreement we could not force that bill
through with the arguments we can now make.
When the reciprocity agreement was in the
house the republicans tried to embarass the
democrats by putting an amendment in and
putting things on the free list. The democrats
said: 'Don't be in a hurry; wo have another
bill coming that will give you all the freo list
you want, just be patient.' I wish I could be
down there. I would like to be in tho
gallery. I would like to hear those speeches
when that bill comes front the house and goes
through the senate. Who will dare oppose it'
Let these men who have been standing as cham
pions for the farmer come out and tell the
farmer why they refused to give him this free
list. Let them explain to him what sacredness
there is about protection that compels them as
their representative to deny them their chance
to get their goods in competition with the
world."
ABOUT "DESTRUCTION"
The Houston (Texas) Post, says: "If Mr
Bryan and his followers like Owen, Gore, Stone
SvJoDavls want ? desty the democratic
party, they are on the right line. Let them
continue to proclaim populistic doctrines as the
progressive faith and in time, no doubt, they
will see the party rent in twain."
The men who insist that the democratic partv
shall be true to its name are not bent upon
destroying the party. They are engaged in the
effort to prevent the democratic party from b
ing wrecked upon the same rpek that brought
disaster to the republican party. It is an in
sult to democrats to say that the proposition
that democratic senators and representatives as
well as the party itself shall be free from the
tain' SPeCial interCSt8 is "P0Pulist?c doc-
The Post would probably be satisfied with n.
thinS labeled "populistic doctrine" if iT per
mitted corporation control of the party and i
representatives. v y na lts
BEFORE THE Y. M. O. A.
Mr. Bryan laid the cornerstone of the new
Y. M. C. A. building at Dea Moines, la. Tho
following report of the proceedings is taken from
tho Des Moines Register and Leader:
Beforo an immense crowd, which blockaded
traffic in every direction in the vicinity of
Fourth and Chestnut streets, William J. Bryan
spread into place the trowel of mortar which
completed the formal laying of the corner stone
of the new Y. M. C. A. building.
In a brilliant speech, which preceded the final
ceremony, Mr. Bryan praised the aims of the
association and commended the work which it
has performed in the past, predicting for- it an
even more successful future.
'Despite the cold, raw wind which swept the
streets, a great crowd had gathered to witness
the ceremonies before Mr. Bryan was escorted
upon the temporary platform erected, for the
occasion. The air was so cold that Mr. Bryan
delivered his address without removing his hat
or overcoat.
The services were simple in every respect.
President J. G. Olmstead of the Y. M. C. A.,
as master of ceremonies, introduced Henry Wal
lace, who offered prayer, following which Mr.
Bryan was presented and delivered his address,
which with tho ceremonies incident to the corner
stone laying and a song by the glee club com
pleted the program.
Mr. Bryan reviewed the early history of the
association, its humble beginning in Great
Britain two-thirds of a century ago, and com
mented on its wonderful growth. In connection
with bringing the idea here from England he
said:
"It is one of the good things which we have
borrowed and I am glad that it is one of the
things we can import without the formality of
going through the customs house. Good ideas
do not have to wait for a reciprocpity agreement
before we can utilize them."
He pointed out that the Y. M. C. A. now has
invested in buildings $65,000,000 with an an
nual expenditure for the support of the work
of $8,000,000 which he stated was four
times the amount expended by the two great
political parties in the last national election.
"These elections only occur once in four
years," he said, "so by" multiplying 'by 'four we
get the immortal ratio of 16 to 1 both from
a financial standpoint and the benefits accruing
to the country at large."
He took up the name of the association trans
posed the order of words and "discussed them in
successive order.
"Men," he said, "are called upon to face temp
tation more often than women and it is a matter
of record that they are less able to withstand
'f Ai l. -ugh any of our Penitentiaries will
establish that fact beyond question.
'Youth is the period when man most needs
strength against temptation. It is then that
character is formed and the tendencies which
will probably remain with him throughout life
are fixed. That is the time when the association
BteVari ht helping hand and suide his
wlTi Value of huraan "fe is inconceivable.
nrna70n0 T f telHng What the boy will
n to when matured or what he will be
TrZht 5Ia country- " is far more pitiful a
tragedy when a young man is permitted to go
SnSyn? ?8J his life than wnen a man goes
down to death in an heroic endeavor.
thv Mn Ati0Tnx,pays so larSe dividends as
tn JmiS; h J !s cheaPer to save a man than
Lofn liJ bira and lfc csts less to keep him from
ward" y aU t0 keep watcn on Mm after-
rfliuSnni60? Stress upon Christianity and the
fStiSi ? 1?" which are back of the insti
an o?nd,dHClared tbat wltbout ose influences
rave0rbteffe0cntedf baraCter ld never
thai? livth? t,eP?St ,,n the hearts of men and
rerooniThfiif011 1,eadB tbem to cognize their
oefTenSDffi XnhQ Crat0r a-nd the WorkinS
in rIte?nLn?tiiUtl0n,,ha8 been one of th0 greatest
est ins trom??ndEd of life' one thQ event
advaneSft tSf ffi6 uPfting of men and the
wnfi of civiHzatIon."
the BrSfhArh Bl7a? WaS tne guest of honor at
Mehod??00J? , bo;quot held at the First
duced hi irCh inJhe evenlng. He was Intro-
-greatest S?SJerA Ma3!0r A J' Matbis as tbo
speech in IVSS tAmeJIcan" and made a brief
of the Wh5h h,G characterfced the formation
as on of I5ert00d ,and Its widespread influence
SC, ttliopoful signs of the times.
tional ami VK U? Phases" he gaid, 1'local, na
tional and interdenominational, it will have a
