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The Commoner
.X0M,NO.5
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Brother or Brute?
Tho following dispatch Is from Berlin, under
date of May 5:
"Any American in Berlin during the last
week or so ha's seen two sides to tho ques
tion as to whether or not Germany can pay
tho reparations demanded.
"Ho has seen those who can't pay; and he
has seen those who can.
'On the ove of May day ho might have
seen Germany's war profiteers crowding in
to tho groat hotels, arrayed in costly cloth
ing and sparkling with jewelry, eating such
delicacios as hothouse poaches and gur.L'ng
champagne.
"Those are the men and women who have
fattened on war and war's miseries; they
have profiteered in everything from cannon
to food; and they have tho money.
"These had hardly scattered to their
homos when the thousands of men and
women, bringing their children, swarmed
from the capital's poor districts to hold a
May day demonstration In the Lustgarten.
"They carried red banners. They clust
ered on balcon'es of the ex-kaiser's palace.
They congregated on the steps of tlio great
cathedral. Thoy banked a choir of 500
male voices on the portico of the art mu
seum. "It was purely a workmen's demonstra
tion. Tho red was not of Communism,
Spartacism or Bolshevism, but of Social
Democrats.
"Tho government had taken precautions
against disorders. On all streets leading
to tho Lustgarten groen-uniformed police
were stationed with rifles slung over
shoulders. One sensod in nearby buildings
more police with machine guns.
"In contrast - with the fat, red-blooded
profiteers of the night before, one saw
white-faced workmen's wives shepherding
pathetic hundreds of workmen's pale, spindle-shanked
children. J
"Tho youngsters carried wreaths of paper
roses mixed with green branches and ban
ners demanding 'Schools for all, with equal
opportunities for all.' They also bore other
banners denouncing child laborl
"The , adults carried banners that
scroamed, 'No more 1914 'No more wars.'
"This May day demonstration was in a ,
sense an answer to the monarcnial pomp the
old ruling class dispayed at the funeral of.
the late empress. It was tho common peo
ple's defiance to thoso who never cease
working aid hoping for tho restoration of
kaisorism with its plunder and privilege."
Tho above cablegram represents a s'tuation
Which finds its counterpart in every land the
contrast is less striking in the United States than
elsewhere, but even here wo see tho profiteer
revelling with ill-gotten gains, and the needy.
The question, Brother or Brute?, is a pressing
one everywhere. Shall man deal with his fellow
man from the standpoint of a brother or from
the standpoint of a brute? W. J. BRYAN.
A careful study of the various demands made
by the allies upon the Germans in the way of
an indemnity would seem to indicate that one
profitable use has been made of the experience
secured by the war profiteers, namely that of
being able to guess pretty closely to how much
money the other fellow has before fixing the
price.
ALIENATION OF AFFECTIONS
Alienation of affections is one of the most
serious of crimes and yet it is, in most cases a
wrong without a remedy. The injured party
is left to a civil suit for damages which means
nothing unless the defendant is rich and then
it often 1ms th,e. .appearance of blackmail rather
than an honest attempt to secure redress. If the
home is the unit of society an invasion of it is
a crime against tho public as well as an offense
against the injured husband or wife and should
bl Pl!,ui5ied as ch. Anyone, man or woman
who destroys a home and separates either hus
band or wife from the other should be dealt
with as a public enemy and the punishment
should be sufficient to deter those amorS
nclined. Murder and then suicide are frequent
ly the sequel to these departures from virtue
criminal law should furnish an adequate
remedy On another page will be found a tw!
uno editorial on this subject. W, J. BRYAN.
A TIME FOR ACTION
The mases must be on the alert the
reactionaries are at work. The pressing
problems now before the eountry for solu
tion will not be settled right if the com
mon people fail to look after their inter
ests. Tho special interests are always at
work, and every advantage thoy secure will,
be wrung from the masses of the people;
The Commoner has in several issues pre
sented a National Legislative Program
which is intended to bring about world
peace, curb the profiteer, prevent extrava
gance and waste in governmental affairs,
and to restore the people's rule. The pur
pose of this program, which will be found
on another page, is to present a set of prin
ciples around which the masses of the peo
ple can rally in an effort to protect their
interests and rights. It has met with na
tionwide approval. The Commoner desires
to hear immediately from everyone who
approves this legislative program, and will
assist in crystallizing public opinion to
write it into the law of the land.
A NATIONAL PRIMARY NEEDED
The following news item indicates that Sena-
tor Johnson will attempt to cure Newberryism by
amending the constitution.
"Washington, May 9. Senator Johnson,
Republican, of California, today introduced
' a resolution proposing a constitutional
amendment to give congress authority to
regulate state primaries. It is designed to
meet the situation arising from the decision '
of the supreme court in the Newberry case
that congress was without power to regulate
primaries.
"Senator Newberry returned today to his
seat in the senate following annulment by
tho supreme court of his conviction in
Michigan of violation of the federal corrupt
practices act. He had been absent about
one and one-half years."
That will he difficult if not impossible. What
we need is a national primary law fixing a day
and prescribing the conditions, except where the
states have primaries on that day, and regulate
them in accordance with the national law; No
need to interfere with the states where they
will protect the nominations. But there should
be a national primary. It is unforunate that the
supreme court should have freed Newberry. If
there were errors he should have been given a
new trial as four of the justices asked.
W. J. BRYAN.
CLEANING UP BASEBALL
Judge Landis is making himself decidedly un
popular with a certain following of basebaHr-He
Will invoke the law to prohibit gambling in the
grandstands and bleachers. He may go further
and ask every town and city government to stop
betting on baseball games.
Gambling or betting, became so prevalent
i u srondstands and bleachers in several
cities that true lovers of the game were so dis
gusted that they quit going to the parks. Friends
and relatives of the players seemed to be the
IflTnf f Tthe betting; This naturally caused
suspicion. In some cities owners of stock in the
clubs were among the heaviest bettors
Year before last it was a common thing in
almost every village and town in the country
for pools to be made on the games. In one
rural community in southern Ohio the telephone
system was completely monopolized for, an hour
5?nfe !gameS in. carryin& scores to the groups
of pool players out on the farms. There was a
gamePs l Wr dU6 t0 la of cfiaence tatoS
r, Bere Judge Landis succeeds in purifvinir
baseball he will have to obtain strict AnfrS?
ment 0f the gambling laws throughout the nT
tion. Just so long as any considerable sum of
money is bet on the games, that long win the
danger exist of players being influenced Ban
players are human. Miami, Fla., Herald.'
The fact that every fellow who has been nav
ng an excess profits tax to the government T
in favor of tho repeal of the law leVyTnff ?
should bo somewhat .decisive of the inVSL :
as to whether this is a kinof thaPcane
passed on to the consumer. VT bo
The Split Begins
Read the following dispatch, from Washing,
ton:
"Washington, April 30. folding a solid
front against a Repubican spilt, Democrats
forced through tho House Saturday an
amendment to the army appropriation bill
cutting down the enlisted force to 150,000
men. The Kahn proposal for a bigger force
never got to a vote. ;
"The bill as approved by Secretary Weeks
made provision for 168,000 men or 12,000
more than the number fixed by the measure
last session and vetoed. ' ' - .
"There was no certainty, however, that
the 150,000 figure would stand, for tho
vote Saturday was in committee of the
whole and the house may demand a separ
ate vote on the amendments in jpassipg the
bill next week.
"The amendment for reduction of the en
listed strength to -150,000, the lowest fig
ure suggested in the long debate, was of
fered by Representative Byrnes, Democrat,
South Carolina. Only two Democrats op
posed it and many Republicans, gave it their -support.
The vote was 109 to 82.
"The House previously hail adopted as a
substitute for the Kahn proposal an amend
ment by Representative Pish, Republican,
New York, for an army of 156,$ 00, but the
Byrnes amendment went through and wiped
it out.
"Representative Mondell, Wyoming, the
Republican leader, in closing debate urged
Republicans to stand by the bill as framed
by the appropriations committee with its
enlisted total of 168,000 but many members
of his party deserted him as the march was
started down the aisle for an actual count.
"Chairman Kahn of the military affairs
committee pleaded for at -least 175,000
men, declaring the times too troublous for
wholesale slashing of forces. Representative
Wood, Republican, .Indiana, taking issue
with the Californian, insisted that if the
world was on the verge of a fire' a few thou
sand extra, men could not put itbuV
The Democrats took the people's side on the
army question and secured enoiigh Republicans
to defeat the Republican leadera In. the House
and tho Republican secretary of war. The split
begins. If the Democrats willcontinue to tako
the people-'s side and STAND FIRM, the split
will continue. A split on taxation will come next,
W. J, BRYAN.
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FAITH
' -. ; - (By Ella Wheeler' Wilcox.)
I will not doubt, though air my ships at sea
Come drifting home with broken mast and
sails; .-''''
I shall believe the Hand which never fails
AmSeemlng evil W0Ieth good for me;
And though I weep because ;tnose sails are
battered, ' ;.,, '
Still will I cry, while .my -best "'hopes lie
shattered, " '
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"I trust in Thee!
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I will not doubt, though all "my "prayers return
Unanswered from the still, wnttr"ealm above;
ixrl81,1 believe t is ah all-wise Love
Which has refused those things for which I
yearn;
JVnd though at times I cannot keep from griev
es .
Yet, the pure ardor -of my fixed "believing,
Undimmed shall bum. "
1 !w0t d,1ubt' th& sorrows faii-like rain
t 5Ln,ulJ es Bwarni 1Iko Bees about a hive;
Ar; 31 beeve the, heights for which I strive
ArJ waojied-by-anguish and-by, pain ;
&nu tnough I groanand tremble with my
. crosses,
I yet shall see, through my severest losses,
The greater gain.,
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1 nS dut; weli anchored .inhe faith,
gal?6 8taunqh sWPiWaobrAves every
ToShinf ltS fi$W& thatt wnisnot. fail
"r iil y cry w.n-fcody Parts wjth spirit,
i5,do not doubt!" so listening orJds may
hear it, , . - ,
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