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' Kind But Surprising.
The Commoner does not, 'as a' 'rule, pub
lish the kind of thinga said about! its editor for
the reason that Jio does not desire the paper to
appear to bo a defender or eulogist of him.
Occasionally, however, it becomes necessary to
use the paper to defend him against unjust at
tack, and sometimes a word of commendation
is published for the purpose of commenting
upon it.
The Topeka Capital recently contained tho
following editorial:
"The Capital has never had any prepossea
slons favorable to W. J. Bryan. The' Issues he has
stood for have been the contradiction of everything
this paper believes in. His manner and method
in campaigns have seemed to us bettor Calculated
to divide than unify tho country juid people, to 'set
section against section and destroy sympathy and
sense of fellowship and of common interest be
tween men in one condition of life and men in an
other condition. Wo were just beginning as a
party in Kansas to see the money question in its'
true light when Bryan by his eloquence and the1
fiery inspiration of his personality plunged us
into a Campaign for which as republicans w.e were
unprepared. The more we saw off his hind of
statesmanship the less wo thought of it.
"Mr. Bryan's political opinions are ho better
today than five years or one year ago; but Mr.
Bryan's personal character and his patriotism and
manly nature as .exhibited by his comments and
conduct since tho assassination of his successful
rival have been such as to make every American
heart warm to him. His tributes to the late presi
dent have been as sincere as they have been just.
No man spoke more promptly or more feelingly
when the news flashed across tho country that the
president had been struck down at Buffalo; and
no man bowed his head in more honest sorrow
when the tidings followed of his death. These
manifestations of Mr. Bryan's goodness of heart
and patriotism have won him a higher place in
the respect of the nation as a man and a citizen
than he has over held in the past."
Tho kindly spirit which pervades the above
editorial is duly appreciated, but attention is
called to, it for the purpose of asking why Dem
ocrats are so misunderstood by their opponents.
Certainly republicans had .aright to expect, not
only from Mr. Bryan but from all Democrats,
sincere sorrow at the President's death and in
dignation at the fact that it came through the.
act of an assassin. It was to be expected that
every patriotic citizen would condemn the deed
and the doctrine whioh led to it, as well as
sympathize with the members of the stricken
family. Neither should it be a matter of sur
prise that Democrats entertained a respeot for
Mr. McKinley's many personal virtues, or were
touched by the scenes wnich attended the clos
ing moments of his life.
Democrats and Republicans differ upon pub
lic questions, and Mr. Bryan has always con
tended that thiB difference in, for the most part,
an honest difference. No one makes a greater
mistake than he who assumes that any con
siderable portion of any party is unpatriotic or
bent upon mischief. The Dcmoorats havo not
attempted to array one class against another.
It became necessary to point out the effeqt of
republican policies and, as is always the case
those policies helped some people and ipjured
others. . Mi. Bryan never said anything on the
silver question more calculated to arrayv class
agaiuBt class than Mr. Mckinley, Mr. Blaine,
The Commoner
Mr.- Sherman, and Mr. Carlylc had said before
him.v ,.-
That a rising dollar is an advantage to
the money owner is a self-evident truth, and
that it is hurtful to tho producers of wealth
and to tho debtor is equally plain. That a
national bank currency is a good thing for tho
national banker is apparentto anyone, and that
it is dangerous as well as expensive to other
people ought to be easily understood. The Dem
ocrats believe that trusts and imperialism aro
beneficial to a portion of the people and injur
ious to the masses. It is impossible to discuss
public questions without pointing out the.cffect
of the policies upon the different, classes, and no
party has ever employed this method of argu
ment more persistently than the Republican
party.
Have not the protectionists appealed to tho
sheep raisers, as a class, .and warned them -against
free wool 2- Have not the Republicans
posed as the special guardians of tho wager
earners, and have they not declaimed ,about the
home market? Have they not charged tho
Democrats with favoring low tariff ior tho'
benefit of English manufacturers and-against
tho welfaro of American producers ? Have not
Republican papers contended that Demooratio
policies would bring idleness to the wage-earn-erB?
Did not MivMcKinley make capital out
of. a-banquct given-Mr. Wilson when he visited
England? And did he not insist that his party
would open tho mills, charging infcrentially
that the Democratic party had closed them?-
'It is gratifying to knowtbat many,rcpubli-.
can editors have recently begun to realize what'
they seem to havo ignored, namely, that the
Demoorats, Populists and Silver Republicans
are earnestly endeavoring to Becure what they
believe to be needed reform. The members of
these three parties have co-operated on para
mount issues while they differed about minor
ones; they have defended their convictions and
will continue to , defend them, but none
surpass them in devotion to their nation's in
terest or m their support of the constituted '.
authorities.
In view of all that has been said and done,
is it not strange that any Republican should be
surprised at the words spoken by Mr. McKin
ley's opponents at the time of the assassination?
The editor of The Commoner is greatly obliged
to the Topeka Capital for its compliment but
regrets that any doubt ever existed as to the
honesty and sincerity of himself and his sup
porters in recent campaigns.
W
The Farm.
As the daily papers have seen' fit to make
some comments upon the house which I -am
building, it may not -be out of place to present
the facts to the readers of The Commoner, fti
the spring of 1893 I purchased five acres of
ground about three miles southeast of Lincoln.
Tho land is situated on the top of a beautiful
knoll overlooking the Antelope valley. The
view from this spot is unsurpassed; as far as
the eye can reach tho land is under cultivation
and tho colors change with the crops and tho
seasons. .
In ISOT twenty acres were purchased ad-
joining the" original' five, and-m 8198 I began
improving 0 place by setting out an orchard
and shade trees. Since, then, ten acres moro
have been added so that tho farm" now consists
of thirty-five acres. Our only son is past
twelve, and believing that life on a farm will
be beneficial to him as well as pleasant to tho
rest of us, we are now about to realize the plans
made years ago.
The first day of October was tho seven
teenth anniversary of our marriage and tho
fourteenth anniversary of my removal from
Illinois to Nebraska. Td celebrate this doublo
anniversary Mrs. Bryan and I went out to tho
farm on that day and helped to stake off tho
ground for the house and 'took out the first
shovelfull oi dirt. The foundation will be put
in this fall so that the house can be completed
early next spring. When it is ready for occu
pancy a picture of it will appear in Tue Commoner-
until it is completed the plans aro
subject to change,
. W ' V-; '
Piano Trust Collapses.
The Music Trades reports that the scheme
to form a trust in the piano industry has col
lapsed, but it is evident from its editorial that
music will loose none of its sweetness thereby.
The paper says:
"The trade is not going to easily forget the
harassment and anxiety to which It has been put
by him and.' the promoters of this scheme, nor is it
likely to easily forget that the scheme he put
forth was virtually to hand the industry over to
tho control., of a, few commercial houses, which
were to do all the business, make all the money
though in so doing they would bring disaster to'
hundreds Of concerns and thousands of their em
ployes. "There is another aspect to this question which
must not be lost sight of, for it has undoubtedly
exercised a very serious influence upon the public
mind. I refer to the ridiculous statements made
by the promoters of the trust through the daily'
papers with regard to the profits in the piano
business. Some of the statements which were put
.readdB o epxmi bum. n -snoDSujmo Aava Qlv mo
that the public was being robbed by the piano
makers as well as by the dealers, and that If a
piano trust were started it would be largely for
the benefit of the public, which would be enabled
to buy even the most celebrated makes for about
half the prices now quoted. How utterly untrue
this is we all know, but the effect will remain with
the public for years, and it will make the work of
every manufacturer and dealer who is trying to
sell a piano, at retail, all the harder."
A Pathetic Appeal.
One of the most pathetic passages in litera
ture is that wherein, the father of Absalom
gave utterance-to that famous plaint over tho
weakness and the folly of his offspring. Ono
is reminded of that passage by the following
appeal made by a republican paper to the trusts:
There is. a tendency to raise the prices of all
commodities needed for the maintenance of the
heme that is liable to drive away people who are
disposed to settle in Omaha.
There has recently been a very material in
crease in tho price of coal, meat, provisions, veger
tables, as well as in rentals, which imposes a hard
ship upon wage-workers with limited incomes. -
While this advance in prices all along the Hue
is largely due to the higher price of the raw prod
ucts 'of the farm, orchard and garden, the attempt
. i!