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The Commoner
VOL..22, No. 10
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self government. The provisions in this law that
provides for assessment of intangible property,
at one-fourth the rate levied on tangible proper
ty violates the fundamental principle of equal
ity of taxation and thereby relieves the wealthy
of taxation and multiplies tho burdens of all
others. From Nebraska Democratic Stato Platform.
IMPORTANT PLANKS IN NEBRASKA DEMO
CRATIC PLATFORM
Wo favor necessary legislation that will enable
the farmdrs so to control the marketing of their
products that tho best prices and the profits
thoreof will bo paid to them and not into the
pockets of tho speculator and gamblers. To this
end wo favor the principle of co-operativo mar
keting. Wo stand unalterably, as from the beginning,
for tho primary system, for tho preservation in
tact of the power which it reposes in the hands
of the people, and are opposed to the four bills
becoming laws that are to be voted on under the
referendum.
We are in favor of tho repeal of, or amend
ment to, the indeterminate sentence law and in
favor of tho modification of tho rules governing
the pardon board that permit and encourage of
ficials to release from the penitentiary hardened
criminals without proper punishment.
We favor wator power development -under
state control to furnish light, heat and power at
tho lowest possible cost to the people.
We believe that tho cost of the new state
capitol should be kept within the appropriation.
From Nebraska Democratic Stato Platform.
PLEDGED TO REDUCE COST OP STATE
GOVERNMENT
We condemn the Republican state administra
tion for its utter disregard of the taxpayers of
tho state. Tho extravagance, waste, inefficiency,
and the usurpation of power by the present state
administration is inexcusable, and the Republi
can party that is responsible for the imposition
upon the farmers, wage-earners, and the middle
classes, should be and will be dethroned by the
voters at the November election.
We pledge ourselves, if entrusted with power,
to economy, simplicity and efficiency in the ad
ministration of the state's affairs; to the reduc
tion of taxes by the reduction of the cost of gov
ernment. Specifically we pledge ourselves to the abolish
ment of the existing duplicate state government
by the repeal of the administrative code law, to
the discharge of a great army of useless em
ployes now on the pay roll, and to a regrouping
of the various departments in the hands of the
elected state officials, thus restoring constitu
tional government that is responsible to the peo
ple and responsive to their will. From Nebras
ka Democratic State Platform.
SENATOR HITCHCOCK PLEDGED TO
DRY CAUSE
Tho attempt has been made to distract
public attention from the real issue irt this
campaign by dragging in the questions that
have been settled. Among others an at
tempt has been made to revive prohibition.
That is a settled question as far as Nebras-.
ka is concerned and as far as I am con
cerned. If any attempt should bo made to
amend the Volstead act as to legalize the
sale of wine and beer, I should vote against
it. It is the duty of a senator to represent
his state, and Nebraska being a prohibition
state, I consider it to be the duty of her
senators to represent tho expressed will of
her people. Those who pretend that we are
voting on prohibition or that it is an issue
are doing so because they are afraid to
meet the real issues, which are ruinous de
flation, tho robber tariff, outrageous taxa
tion, and ship subsidy. Senator Gilbert M.
Hitchcock, in an address at Holdrege, Neb.,
September 30.
NEBRASKA'S DEMOCRATIC CONGRES
SIONAL TICKET
We indorse and present with pride to the peo
ple of Nebraska for their consideration our six
Democratic nominees for congress. We submit
that in former Governors Morehead and Shallen
berger, in Edgar Howard, James Hanley, Dr.
Cummins and C. W. Beal, the Democratic party
has presented the strongest and ablest congres
sional ticket ever nominated by any party in this
state. They are, without exception, men of ex
perience, of proved capacity, thoroughly familiar
with the needs and interests of the state, and they
may be depended upon, if electee!, to stand to
gether with Senator Hitchcock like a stone wall
in the defense of the people against the enactions
of special privileges and private greed. From
Nebraska Democratic State Platform.
BRYAN PUTS IT UP TO YOU
You, nor can others, deny C. W. Bryan hit
them, and hit them mighty hard the other day
at Polk. Attorney General Davis had just in
formed the audience how well they were pleased
with the McKelvie code administration, and Mr
Bryan stepped to the front aud said to the audi
ence: "If you are satisfied with what you have, don't
vote for mo!"
. That was enjugh. It told the whole story If
you are satisfied with what McKelvie has given
you, and what Randall will give you if elected
, do not vote, for Bryan. He isn't going to inflict
' any code business on you, and if you want it ha
I !?1id,iBlappol?i 7m " ou elect hI to succeed
McKelvie. It's up to you. Kearney, Neb
Democrat. ' rik3U,f
LINCOLN LINING UP FOR MR. BRYAN .
There is one thing certain Lincoln is lining
'up behind the candidacy of Charles W. Bryan -for
governor, in an enthusastic manner. The com
mon folks of Lincoln believe in Charlie. They
have beheld him wage some real battles in their
behalf. He fought the gas trust alone and almost
single handed and in the end he won. He fought
the coal trust and freed the public from the un
reasonable toll it paid in that city to the dealers.
And so Lincoln people tell us that Charlie Bryan
is the man the state needs to clean house follow
ing McKelvie and his crew's miserable conduct
ance of affairs. Blue Hill, Nebr., Leader.
PEOPLE INDORSED MUNY COAL YARD
If Charlie Bryan- gets as good a vote in Lin
coln as the vote on the municipal coal yard in
dicates, he will have no trouble going into the
governor's chair next January to clean up tho
muss made by Little Boy McKelvie. Mr. Bryan's
municipal coal yard experiment, after working
all last winter, was brought to a vote ot the peo
ple of Lincoln recently through court dction and
was sustained by a vote of the people, 11 to 1.
We hardly expect that heavy vote for Charlie for
governor, but if Lincoln does not give him 2 to
1, it will be because the number of hidebound
partisans in that city has not decreased as fast
as it should. Fairbury, Neb., Journal.
WAYS TO REDUCE EXPENSES
Charles Bryan can see a multitude of ways in
which tho expenses of government can be cut
and he'll proceed to cut them when ho gets in
office. For instance, there are twelve blue sky
department employes on the payroll and only
half a dozen licenses granted to individuals. That
means two state inspectors to watch each man
who obtained a license. That's more code hum
buggery. Wayne, Neb., Democrat.
The whole trouble seems to be that Europe
has too many diplomats. A diplomat is a man
who is vastly disturbed by the existing conditions
between nations, especially if they are peaceful,
and immediately proceeds to communicate his
disturbances to these countries. He is perfectly
willing for any other nation to follow the paths
of self-determination if they have kindly allowed
him to mark the places wherein their feet are to
tread.
Put a cross in the
Democratic circle on
your ballot Nov. 7
and take no chances.
M'KELVIB TO THE RESCUE
Governor McKelvie, it is announced from Re
publican headquarters at Lincoln, is to take the
stump fdr R. B. Howell for Benator, Charles
Randall for governor, and the whole blamed
ticket. The announcement comes with a little
flourish oX bravado and defiance. And it was pre
ceded by statements and letters from His Ex
cellency all going to show that it is Impossible to
reduce taxes and the cost of government in Ne
braska, and that the dual code government and
the new revenue system arO precisely what the
people need.
Democrats will welcome Governor McKelvie
and his ticket with bloody hands to a hospitable
'grave. They will delight to meet the issue he
presents, and that he is determined to make the
paramount issue of the state campaign.
Democrats believe it is possible to reduce taxes
and provide a more efficient and economical gov
ernment. They know they can do it because
they have done It. Nebraska is no larger now,
no more state institutions, than when Demo
cratic administrations got along handsomely
.with $8,000,000 or $0,000,000 appropriations
for a biennium instead of $25,000,000 to $30,
000,000. Democrats know they can administer the af
fairs of the state through elected constitutional
officers, because they have done it before. They
know that Nebraska can, get along famously
-without the six expensive code secretaries and
their hundreds of understrappers, who 'only pile
up expense and introduce the confusion and an
noyance of duplicate state government.
Democrats know they can raise the necessary
funds to support the government by levying taxes
uniformly and justly, and by leaving the taxing
power in the people's hands, because they have
done it. They propose therefore to repeal the
odious new revenue law, which taxes real estate
and all visable property at 100 cents on the dol
lar, and stocks, bonds, money and other forms
of wealth at only 20 cents on the dollar.
Governor McKelvie and his cohorts can argue
till they are black in the face, but they cannot
convince Nebraska taxpayers that taxes are not
too high. Tho principal worry of the Nebraska
farmer today is how, with Republican prices for
his products only a half or a third what they
were under Democratic administration, he can
pay Republican taxes two and three and four
times greater than they were under Democratic
administration.
One thing sure: Taxes are never going to be
reduced by a party that declares it is impossible
to reduce them. Neither is better government to
be secured from a party that insists that the ex
isting government is the best government pos
sible. Omaha, Neb., World-Herald.
QUIZZED MKELVDE ABOUT TAXES
(From Lincoln Daily Star.)
A witty Irishman came pretty near breaking up
Governor McKelvie's meeting at O'Neill last
week by interrupting " the governor's speech
while he was in the midst of his figures and
charts explaining the code system of government
aud why the taxes are high.
"Governor, when you were here four years
ago, making your first campaign, you roasted the
s Democrats for spending so much money and
promised us that if you were elected you would
reduce the expenditures," remarked the Irish
man, "Now, why haven't you done so."
Mr. McKelvie replied by saying that some of
the most important items of expense had in
creased to such an extent as no one could antici
pate, and because of this the state government
had to spend more money.
"When I came into office," he said "the peni
tentiary had a population of 35,0, and row it has
nearly 600 inmates. The Lincoln stato hospital
for insane had 600 patients then, and now it has
about 1,000."
"Yes, and if you continue a little while long
er we'll all be in the insane asylum," was the
shot hurled back by the inquirer.
The governor was unable to proceed with his
speech for several minutes, due to the uproarious
laughter which followed.
The newspapers are. now debating whether
Ford or Rockefeller is the richer man. Inas
much as neither of them seems to know what ne
owns or hoiW much of a balance he has in tno
bank, this is not likely to be decided in time to
satisfy anybody. One thing is sure, however,
and that is that if the two men would go into
partnership, they could get all the money there
is in the world, as the more machines Penyv
would make the more gasoline John would sen.
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