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A SONG FOR LABOR, DAY
BY WILL M. MAUPIN
I. have builded your towns and cities,
And over your widest streams
I have flung with a giant's ardor
The web of strong steel beams.
T have carved out the busy highways
That mark where your commerce reigns;
With hammer and forgo and anvil
I have wrought your golden gains.
I have girded the rock-ribbed mountains
With rails for the iron steed;
I have delved in the old earth's bosom
To answer the great world's greed.
I have clothed you, housed you, fed you,
For thousands of yoars gone by;
I have stopped to the front when duty
Has called, and I've answered "I!"
I have wrung from the soil denied me
Your toll of the golden grains;
I have garbed you in silks and satins
And fettered my limbs with chains.
I have given my sweat and muscle
To build for you, stone on stone,
The palace of ease and pleasure
The hut I may call my own.
For a thousand years you've driven
A thousand years and a day.
But I, like another Samson, v
Am giving my muscles play. . -
My brain is no longer Idle; ,
I see with a clearer sight,
And piercing the gloom about me
I'm seeing, thank God, the light!
I see in the days before mo
My share of the things I've wrought?;
See Justice no longer blinded,
The weights of her scales unbought.
I see in the not far future
The day when the workers share
Is more than his belly's succor;
Is more than a rag to wear.
I see on the morrow's mountains
The glints of a golden dawn;
The dawn of a day fast coming
"When Btrivings and hates ate gone.
Lo, out of the vastly darkness
That fetters my limbs like steel
I can hear the swelling chorus
That sings of the commonweal.
For a thousand years you've driven
For a thousand years and one.
But I'm coming to take possession
Of all that my hands have done.
And citien and towns and highways
I've builded shall be mine own;
And Labor, at last unfettered, ,
Shall sit on the kingly throne.
WOODROW WILSON'S AVAILABILITY
The following communication addressed to
Mr. Bryan by the Jacksonian club of Omaha ex
plains itself:
Hon. William J. Bryan: Whereas, the
Jacksonian club has passed resolutions indors
ing the candidacy of Hon. Woodrow Wilson for
the presidency of the United States and fully
realizes that the strength and popularity of any
democratic movement In Nebraska and else
where will depend more upon you than upon
any other man or force; you who have thrice
been honored and have thrice honored the demo
cratic party as its standard bearer, we therefore
urge you to lend the great weight and influence
of your asistance to the popular movement for
Woodrow Wilson.
"We believe that, again harmoniously aligned
under your leadership, the democratic party in
Nebraska will enthusiastically express them
selves for Hon. Woodrow Wilson and demo
cratic success. Jacksonian Club of Nebraska.
UB. F. MARSHALL, President.
"H. S. DANIEL, Secretary."
Mr. Bryan acknowledges with appreciation
the compliment paid. He recognizes the merit
and popularity of Governor Wilson, but is not
yet prepared to discuss the relative strength of
those who can be classed among availables. Mr.
Bryan has but one desire in the matter, namely,
that the best man may be chosen. He has hesi
tated to urge any one man over others because
he is anxious to have the benefit of all the light
possible. Many have already reached a decision
for one candidate or another and Mr. Bryan is
glad to see such organize and present the claims
of their choice.
one knows where Folk stands. He is no
"parquet" statesman; he stands for the rights
of all. Why look farther and nominate a less
deserving lnan? Why not give impetus to his
candidacy, for in his candidacy there would be
both strength and character.
THE SPECIAL SESSION
Chicago Tribune (rep.): Congress is to ad
journ today. All its members will rejoice at
the escape from the heat and humidity of
Washington. ONE IMPORTANT QUESTION
HAS BEEN LEFT IN ABEYANCE WHICH
SHOULD HAVE BEEN ACTED UPON. THAT
IS THE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT FOR
THE DIRECT ELECTION OF SENATORS. IT
IS SLEEPING IN CONFERENCE. THE SUG
GESTION THAT EACH STATE SHOULD BE
ALLOWED TO DECIDE FOR ITSELF BE
TWEEN ELECTING ITS SENATORS AS NOW
OR BY DIRECT VOTE SHOULD HAVE BEEN
ACCEPTED AND THE SUBJECT DISPOSED OF
AS FAR AS CONGRESS IS CONCERNED.
But the special session has been so fruitful
in good results that there should be no harping
on sins of omission. The reciprocity agreement
with Canada, to consider which congress was
convened, has been ratified. A new campaign
publicity law which should be productive of
good has been enacted. The terms on which
Arizona and New Mexico can enter the union
have been prescribed. The membership of the
next house of representatives has been de
termined and state legislatures have their work
cut out for them.
WHY HE IS FOR GOVERNOR FOLK
Otto Baudler, Austin, Minn: Whether or not
the democratic party will continue to command
the support and confidence of the masses, will
depend, I take It, upon whether it is to advance
and promulgate measures that are essential to
eliminating graft, special privileges, and the
placing of more power into the hands of the
governed. The party ought not make the mis
take of nominating a man of the Harmon type
for the presidency of the United States; neither
is It justified in honoring a reformer of second
class caliber, when it has men in the party who
have been for years championing the cause of
true democracy and educating pooplo to the
wisdom and expediency of certain great reform
principles.
I rejoice in the attitude of Mr. Bryan when
he says he is going to do all he can J,o find
out as much as possible concerning the views
of the various political aspirants. The masses
demand a man whose past record and present
attitude is well known to be on the side of re
form. Such a man is Joseph W. Folk. Eveiy-
VOLUME 11,, NUMBER 34
wood, oppose the preparation of an iron and
steel gchedule at this session, or until after the
president acted?' The fact that he asked the
committee to relieve him of embarrassment by
reporting a bill in the beginning of the extra
session is evidence of good intent at the begin
ning but is not conclusive as to his reasons for
favoring delay at the close of the session.
Those who have confidence In Mr. Underwood
may accept his reasons at their face value but
Mr. Bryan does not have confidence in him and
does not accept his reasons. Mr. Bryan believeB
him tainted with protection and regards his
selection as chairman of the committee as un
fortunate. The committee will have more work
to do next winter. Mr. Bryan will be pleased if
Mr. Underwood's conduct next winter proves
him a real opponent of the principle of protec
tion but Mr. Bryan does not expect such proof
to be furnished.
THE FACTS, AT LAST
Mr. Bryan has at last obtained the facts con
cerning the July 25th caucus.
Mr. Sisson of Mississippi offered a resolution
in the caucus instructing the ways and means
committee to proceed with the preparation of
other bills, including one covering the iron and
steel schedule.
When this was opposed Speaker Clark offered
as a compromise a resolution milder in language
but having the same general object.
Mr. Underwood opposed both these resolu
tions. Mr, Bryan's informant took an. active part in
the caucus and in giving the information mini
mizes the difference between Mr. Underwood
and Mr. Clark, but the fact remains that Mr.
Clark offered the resolution as Mr. Bryan at first
stated on the authority of the Omaha World
Herald. It is strange that Mr. Underwood, in denounc
ing Mr. Bryan, wa& not candid enough to admit
that Mr. Clark introduced the resolution.
The issue, then, is not one of fact, as Mr.
Underwood would have it appear, but a dif
ference as to conclusions. Why did Mr. Under-
NOT LOGIC BUT FORCE
The Chicago Tribune says: "When the house
of representatives was considering the Arizona
New Mexico joint resolution it voted down an
amendment making the grant of statehood to
the first named territory conditional on the
striking out of the judiciary recall provision. A
similar amendment was offered in the Benate
and defeated there. The president vetoed the
resolution because it did not require the elimi
nation of what he looked on aB an indefensible
innovation an attempt to undermine the in
dependence of the judiciary.
"Both senate and house surrendered to the
logic of the veto message. Instead of attempt
ing to pass the joint resolution over his head
they voted in the amendment they had
previously rejected, and thus made the measure
acceptable to the president. It is likely that
there are men in both houses- who are so desirous
'to get the two territories into the union that
they would have agreed to almost anything. The
majority were 'converted by the arguments of
the veto message.
"Now Arizona can become a state by voting
out the judiciary recall and New, Mexico by
changing its constitution so as to make it more
easily amendable."
It is a mistake to construe the surrender of
congress to the president as a compliment to
his logic. It would be a reflection on the in
telligence of congressmen to accuse them of
being convinced by the arguments presented in
the veto message. Some of the republicans who
voted for the first resolution refused, for parti
san reasons, to pass it over the veto that made
the passage of the resolution impossible. The
democrats then surrendered for the same reason
that a. helpless pedestrian turns over his money
to a highwayman. The president drew his veto
gun and said, "Hands up!" and the democrats
threw up their hands. It, so happened that
yielding to the president does not prevent the
restoration of the recall by Arizona after secur
ing statehood. It was like giving up one's
money with the. assurance that a policeman
would soon capture the robber and return the
money.
Of course, the reader will not understand that
The Commoner means to question the presi
dent's motives perhaps to make the illustra
tion more apt the veto should have been likened,
nqt to the act of a lone highwayman but to im
perial exploitation where the conquering na
tion practices grand larceny in the name of
civilization and humanity.
But let no one think for a moment that con
gress surrendered to logic. It was surrender
to force after partisanship had captured the
allies who at first acted with the democrats.
MISSOURI'S WOOL CROP
The Globe-Democrat recently published a
Jefferson City diBpatch giving the value of
various products of the farm in that state. The
headlines called attention to the fact that Mis
souri surpassed some of her neighbor states in
the production of wool, hut on examination of
the statistics revealed the fact that the value of
the wool produced was small compared with the
value of other crops. Wool was put at $1,430,
000, while her corn wasworth 120 millions, her
oats 8 millions, her potatoes 5 millions, her wheat
22 millions, her hay and forage 44 millions and
her cotton nearly 5 millions. Two hundred ana
eight millions Is given as the total value of her
crops more than on hundred times as mucu
as her annual wool product and 'yet there are
some democratic congressmen who pay m
attention to the one sheept ,Mrev than to tne
ninety and nine who are taxed to help tne
sheep grower. The voters had better nv;SU
gate and bring a little pressure to beaT on tnos
who favor & tariff on wool.
JUL
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