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The Commoner
WILLlkH J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.
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Vol. 3. No. 41.
Lincoln, Nebraska, Oct. 1, 1902.
Whole No. 93
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A False and Fraudulent Record
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Republican loaders have caused to bo circulated
In nearly every congressional district of the coun
try a publication which pretends to be a copy of
the record of the proceedings of the lower house of
congress for May 21, 1000.
According to this spurious record it would ap
pear that on May 21, 1900, the republicans of the
house voted In the affirmative, and democratic and
populist members voted in the negative, respect
ing a bill designed to give to the government the
"power to create any corporation for the purpose
of commorco between the "states, including rail
road, telegraph, telephone, transportation, express
and sleeping car companies." The purpose of this
presentation is evidently to take undue advantage
of the present day popularity of government con
trol of. public utility corporations.
This publication presents the record of the dis
cussion had in the house on May 21, 1900, with rela
tion to an entirely different proposition from that
presented In the spurious record.
According to this record the discussion in the
house on May 21, 1900, related to the following
measure;
fHouse lolnt resolution 138. proposing an
amendment to the constitution of the United
States."
r Resolved by ttie senate and house of repre
sentatives of the United States of America in
congress assembled (two thirds of each house
concurring therein), that the following article
be proposed to the legislatures of the several
states as an amendment to the constitution of
the United States:
Section L That in all cases mentioned in
this article the United States shall mean and
include the several states of the United States,
the territories of the United States, and all
territory under the sovereignty of and sub
ject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
Sec 2. That the congress shall have pow
, er to create any corporation for the purpose of
commerce between the states, including rail
road, telegraph, tolephone, transportation, ex
press and sleeping car companies.
Sec. 3. That all corporations in the United
States shall be under the control of congress,
including the power to impose a franchise tax,
. terminate the existence of corporations, for
feiture of the franchise, control and disposition
of the property of the corporation.
Sec. 4. That congress shall have power to
enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Sec. 5. That in the absence of legislation
on the part of congress all powers conferred
upon congress T)y section 3 of this article may
be exercised by the several states.
Now for the facts. No such measure as de
scribed in this bogus record was under considera
tion by the house on May 21, 1900.
The bill which republican leaders have sought
to palm off on the people as the one for which they
voted, and against which the democrats and pop
ulists voted, was the original bill as referred to the
house committee on judiciary. This house judiciary
committee, like other committees of the house, is
a republican committee, and the measure which
republican leaders seek to make the people be
lieve was killed by the votes of democrats and
populists was, in truth, utterly destroyed by the
republican judiciary committeo of the house, and
never-was reported back to the house for discussion
or vote. , ' - '
The truth Is that on May 15, 1900, house jour
nal resolution No. 138 was reported by the ju
diciary committeo to the house in the following
form:
Section 1. All powers conferred by this
article shall extend to the several states, the
territories, the District of Columbia, and all
territory under the sovereignty and subject
to the jurisdiction of the United States.
' - Sec 2. Congress shall have power to dc-
To the Polls! To the Polls! i
!
S Citizenship brings responsibilities as J
well as privileges, and it is to be regret-
J ted that these responsibilities are not al-
Z wavs realized and lived up to.
In the great struggle between human t
t rights and inhuman greed no one can re- J
main indifferent or neutral.
j In manyrof-the states the democratic
party, has boldly met the issues ahcl pre-
S contpfl thA Kancae fiitv nlatfnrm rfimft-
S dies. By doing so it has alienated the J
J representatives of organized wealth and t
must rely upon the support of those who
believe in "Equal Rights to All, Special I
J Privileges to None."
J While it is wise forihe party organi-
J zation to arrange for men in each precinct
i "to get the vote out," yet it is a reflec- t
T tion on the voters that such an effort is t
? necessary. If all the people prized the t
J right of suffrage as they should they X
would not have to be reminded of the S
? arrival of election day or carried to the t
J polls. As it is, those who are awake to
J their civic duty ought to vote in the fore-
? noon and spend the afternoon canvassing 4
. J among those who' need urging.
i i
I To the Polls! To the Polls!
fine, regulate, prohibit or dissolve trusts, mo
nopolies or combinations, whether existing in
the form of a corporation or otherwise. The
several states may continue to exercise such
power In any manner not in conflict with the.
laws of the United otaies.
Sec. 3. Congress shall have power to en
force the provisions of this article by appro
priate legislation.
It was this bill against which the democrat!
and populists voted. Messrs. Loud and McCall, re
publicans, also vottd against this bill.
On May 21, 1900, the question on the immcdiaU
engrossment and third reading of this measure
came up. The democrats and populists voted
against this proposition as, Indeed, they also voted
against tho bill itself as reported by the commit
teo when it came up for final passage.
It will bo seen by tho language of this resolu
tion that congress, by the mere passage of a law,
could have assumed exclusive power over trust
and monopolies and that states could not have ex
ercised any powor in that respect which in any
manner conflicted with tho laws passed by con;
,gross.
Tho bill was also intended to strike a blow
at labor organizations, and Mr. McCall, a republi
can member from Massachusetts, on this account
voted against tho resolution. In explanation of
his voto Mr. McCall said:
"I intend to vote against the proposed
amendmont to tho constitution which, at most,
will keep tho word of promise to the ear, but
break It to tho hope. Let us not deceive our-
selves about this proposition. This amend
ment is not simply aimed at trusts and mo
nopolies, but it has application to evory form
of individual combination, and, In my judg
ment, it confers upon congrcte a power to
strike a most deadly blow at-individual lib
erty. It involve the control of the labor or-
ganlzations of tho country, and of any co-partnership
or union of two or more mon for any " "
business purpose whatsoever. And what will
be "tho effect If we concentrate upon one body
of men tho control of more than one-third of
tho capital of the world, and all these other
tremendous influences? Is there a gentleman
on tho floor who does not bollevo in his heart
that if this power is conferred on congress, the
most corrupt and rottenest place in the uni
verse will bo found right hero In the city of
Washington?"
Whon tho bill, in Its amended form, came uj.
for passago in the house, tho vote stood 154 yeas to
132 nays. Democrats and populists voted against
the bill, and fifty-six republicans refused to vote
at all. Tho measure, as amended by the commit
tee, was regarded as a mere pretense on the part
of republican leaders to give the people relief on
the trust question, and republicans as well as
democrats admitted that to take away from the
states all power over the trusts and vest that
power exclusively in the federal government would
only servo to please the trust magnate.
It will bo ecen by this that the republics
leaders have been engaged in circulating among
the people a downright falsification of the record.
If anyone doubts tho facts as herein presented,
let him go to any public library and examine vol
ume 6 of tho house reports of the Fifty-sixth con
gress. An examination of report No. 1501, made
by the republican judiciary committee of the house,
will sustain tho charges herein made.
If there are those who cannot find it conven
ient to visit a public library, let them call upon
any republican committeeman for a copy of the re
publican campaign book for 1902. On page 95 of
that book it will be found that the proposed con
stitutional amendment, under consideration May
21, 1900, was exactly as is hero described, and that
the purported copy, which republican leaders have
been scattering, is false and fraudulent
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