e
The Commoner,
Juno 20, 190a
Nearlng
tbe Treasaa
Line,
The Chicago Record-Herald says: "Kill all
rivals, rob the public, is the rule of all these
trusts, and they aro making a
mock of the cry of prosperity. A
prosperity which is itself In a
large part a monopoly of monop
olies is hardly calculated to
arouse popular enthusiasm." The Record-Herald
will do well to have a care lest it ho arraigned on
the charge of treason.
The New York Tribune, commenting upon
Senator Bacon's speech, says: "When Mr. Bacon
says that it is impossible that
A the Filipinos should ever occupy
Candid any other relation to the United
statement. States than that of colonists or
subjects, ho tells the exact
truth." Republican papers aro becoming wonder
fully frank. May it not be possible that they havo.
misjudged the temper of the American people?
The Chicago Journal thinks that the Russian
French alliance "indicates that the welfare of men
does not depend on the form of
shattering government under which he
American lives." "Little by little, but
ideals. steadily as, magi's march to the
grave" tlie republican organs are
chattering old-fashioned ideas. The American
fathers taught us that the welfare of man does
depend on the form of government under which ho
lives.
In an address delivered in Boston, J. G. Schur
man, former president "of the Philippine1 commis
sion, said: "The Filipino will
Filipinos nevar be content until we allow
and him to govern himself in his
independence, own way as wo have already al
lowed the Cubans." Mr. Schur
inan was once pointed to by the republican pa
pers as inT authority. He knows something about
the situation in the Philippines, and his opinion
ought to have some weight among republicans.
A Berlin paper prints the statement "that a
number of New York men intend to offer (to the
German emperor a statue of
George "Washington, which is to
be placed In Berlin. It does not
seem fair that all the courtesies
nhnnlri ho on one side. While
representatives of empires are presenting us with
Btatues of kings, why would it not be a good plan
for American citizens to present empires witn
statues of eminent Americans? The statue of
George Washington would bo an inspiring sight in
the capital of an empire.
In a dispatch to the Chicago Record-Herald
(Walter-Wellman, referring to the chairman of the
republican congressional' com
nr. , mittee, says: "Mr. Babcocks
Babcock's idea of running a congressional
idea. campaign is to get together a lot
of money to be used in the close
'districts. He has in the past shown himself some
what of an expert in expenditure of money, but
not so clever in getting hold of the money to
spend. He has always been compelled to fall back
upon Mr. Hanna." Mr. Babcock is not the only
republican politician whose idea of running a
congressional campaign is to "get together a lot
of money to be used in the close districts."
H. B. Allison of Des Moines, Ia writing to
the Chicago Chronicle, says: "During the reign
of King George Hi;, of England
A a law was passed compelling the
Crown 0! ministry of all church denomina-
Giory. tions to make special prayers for
the king. The old Scotch con
venanters, believing it out of character under the
existing regime to pray for the king, got around
the repulsive order In this way: 'Heavenly father,
our God, we earnestly pray thee that thou will
soon, very soon, give our king a crown of glory.'
Would it not be well for our congress to pass a
similar edict for our nation, including the cabi
net?" Those who imagine that it is to their interest
to defend a particular trust because that trust
?. happens, temporarily, to be pay
Purpose ing them a latfge price for their
of ail products, while at the same time
Trusts. they are required to pay tribute
to other trusts,, are reminded oy
the Pittsburg Post that "the purpose of all trusts,
although they may operate In different ways, Is
the same. It is to secure and maintain absolute
control over production and transportation. This
Give Them
George
Washington.
puts the consumer at their mercy and that mercy
is ruled by the size of their dividends. Self-interest
and the love of power, part of the Inner nature
of mankind, naturally leads the trust to opprua
sion and wrong-doing. Sooner or later they must
go the way of all who practice and enforce ab
solutism." The only way to fight the trust sys
tem is to fight all trusts, and while wo may fairly
believe that "sooner or later the trusts may go the
way of all who practice and enforce absolutism,"
this end will not bo reached until the consumers of
the country stand for their rights and array them
selves against the forces which seek to corner the
necessaries of life.
it
An
Expensive
Victory.
" ' "Advice
For
Mr. Rockefeller.
In the Courier-Journal. Henrv Watterson aavs:
If it be insisted that we turn back for a plat
form, why not to that of 1892 on
which wo won our last presiden
tial battle?" A king was onco
congratulated upon a triumph ho
had won in battle after a des
perate struggle in which the larger portion of his
army was annihilated. "Another victory like
that," said the king, "and my kingdom is gone."
It is true that in 1892 "wo won our last presiden
tial battle," but when the democrat recalls tne
record of the administration elected in 1892, ho is
impressed with the thought that that was the most
expensive victory that ever came to a political
organization.
John D. Rockefeller, jr., in one of his public
addresses saidt "The man who is poor, with only
just enough money for the ne
cessities of life, m'ay use 'his life
for the good of others, and that
man is a true success." Is it
not also true that the man who
Is rich, having more money than a hundred men
could use in a life-time, may "use his life for the
good of others and may become a true success?"
Would it not bo well for young Rockefeller to
give some of his good advice to his father? How
ever much money a man may bestow upon univer
sities, he does not "use his life for the good of
others" If ho Is amassing a fortune at the ex
pense of the public.
The war in South Africa began in October,
1899, and was terminated In May, 1902. This cov
ered a period of about two years
A and eight months. It Is estl-
Prophecy mated that the total number of
Fulfilled British troops engaged In thla
war during the entire period
reached 500,000; the largest number in the field
at one time being 280,000. , Concerning the Boer
losses no statistics are available. The British lost
21,151 officers and men; 9.5G5 British soldiers were
missing or taken prisoners; 71,248 British officers
and men were invalided home. It is estimated that
the war cost Great Britain $1,250,000,000. The
British have conquered the Boers, but the predic
tion of Paul Kruger that it would bo "at a price
that would stagger humanity" has been fulfilled,
wys
It is a pity that more of the ministers do not
follow the example set by Rev. Dr. W. M. Hind
man, of Kenton, O., in the ad
ninister's dress delivered by him on last
Righteous Memorial Day. After speaking
Example. touchingly and tenderly of the
dead he turned to the future and
pointed out the path of national honor and duty.
Instead of seeing the hand of Providence in tno
conquering and disponing of helpless people, no
declared that nations as well as individuals must
be guided by moral principles, and Insisted that
those moral principles could not be violated with
out bringing punishment upon the nation. He
said that the people were patiently waiting for tne
administration and congress to solve the Philippine
question, and that if they discovered that greed
instead of principle was to be the guide, there
would go up from an outraged people "a thunder
ing for justice and right akin to the thundering
on ML Sinai."
President Roosevelt appointed a gold demo
crat to a southern judgeship some months ago,
and the republican papers gave
Do Not him credit for great liberality In
Represent going outside of his party to
Democracy. select "a good man," but it ap
peared afterwards that the ap
pointee was a belleyer In practically all of the re
publican policies. That is nearly always the case
when a republican official selects a man to repre
sent the democratic party. President McKinley
generally selected gold democrats to represent the
demooratio party on the commissions appointed by
him, and the example has been followed by officials
of less degree. The governor of Iowa recently had
occasion to appoint a commission to take chargt
of tho Iowa exhibition at the St Louis exposi
tion. Tho bill appropriating $25,000 for tho ex
hibit contained a provision that oight of the com
mission should be republicans and fivo democrats.
Tho governor, instead of appointing representative
democrats, selected five men who aro openly
and notoriously opposed to democratic principles
as set forth in tho Chicago and Kansas City plat
forms. One of them refused to act on tho ground
that ho was no longer a democrat, but another
gold man was appointed. As tho gold democrat,
aro constantly recolvlng rewards from tho republi
cans it Is hardly fair for tho rcorganizers to In--sist
that they should monopolism tho good things
that the democrats have to give.
A reader of Tho Commonor Inquires why th3
democrats of tho 56th congress opposed tho con
stitutional amondmont giving
The congress power to regulate tha
Reason trusts. The democrats voted for
Why. a bill to regulate tho trusts, but
that bill after passing tho house
almost unanimously, died in tho senate after elec
tion. Tho democrats then voted against the pro
posed constitutional amendment becauso it was
not intended to give congress more power (tho
democrats believe that congress now has sufficient
power), but tho amendment was intended to take
away from tho states tho power which they now
have over tho trust question. Tho democrats,
whilo believing in the exorcise of full power by
congress, believe that tho stato should still have,
the right of legislation in caso the federal govern
ment does not do what it ought to do.
"Keep on lotting well enough alone," Is Mr.
Hanna's new campaign slogan. In other words,
while the full dinner pail, which
Tho New tho workingmen were promised.
Campafzu - is without meat, tho workingmen.
Slogan. may be thankful that it Is not
without bread. Whilo on every
hand the people are met with tho exactions of tho
trusts, through which exactions the price of 'the
necessities of life have undergone a marked In
crease, tho wages of the people have not boon in
creased. But tho Hanna consolation is that the
people should be thankful that they enjoy tho priv
ilege of working at all. In fact, they should bo
thankful that they are permitted to live and havo
their being. Whilo every intelligent man must
recognize that there are many things which should
be remedied by the people, while every one knows
that the people are suffering under many inex
cusable impositions, they are told by republican
leaders to "keep on letting well enough alone."
It was those magnificent arguments, "Four years
more t)f the full dinner pall," and "Let well enough,
alone," that won tho victory for the republicans In
1900; and now tho Intelligent people of this coun
try are asked to bo satisfied with that other mag
nificent argument, "Keep on letting well enough,
alone."
Gunton's Magazine is becoming more and
more pronounced in its advocacy of the democratic
policy in the Philippines. It is
A pointing to the conduct of our
Welcome nation in Cuba and suggesting
Recruit. that we follow a similar course
in regard to the islands of the
Pacific. It says;- "The truth Is, in the Philippine
enterprise our government has for the first time
broken utterly with our own glorious past, with
the best in our national traditions and principle's,
and seems likely to depart further yet. Tho ob
vious path of return is to declare, JQrst of all, that
the American purpose Is, as it was with Cuba, to
help the Filipinos to tho capacity for, and then
tho fact of, independence. As Senator Hoar de
clared in his remarkable speech in the senate, May
22, to make such declaration is no more imprac
ticable than tho promise wo made in advance that
Cuba should be independent, or than the standing
promise in the Monroe doctrine that we shall per
mit no interference by a foreign power with any
American republic. When we do take this atti
tude toward tho Philippines, we shall return to the
plane of consistent moral and ptical principle,
from which, through all tho exig. cies of our na
tional life, wo have been able to exert our most
helpful Influence and render our largest service to
humanity and civilization." This is but a para
phrasing of the Kansas City platform, for that
platform demanded not an immediate withdrawal
from tho Philippine Islands, but the immediate dec
laration of a purpose to withdraw as soon as a
stable government is established and the further
purpose to add to independence protection from
outside interference. The more the Kansas City,
platform is studied the more popular it will b
come.