1rV J P , ti i v ? clplcs, but promised to'ro'tdrn as soon' as' wore was any attdmpt to surrender its creed. Mr. William can now take. up the work again and with him aa ' a leader it ought not to ho dffflcult to' put the Mas sachusetts democracy again on sound principles. Tho reorganizes of Indiana made great boasts aftor their victory in tho state convention. Well, tho Sentinel had things its own way; it was in a position to have a controlling influence in the management of tho campaign. It rejoiced over tho elimination of every issue that was "dead" or oven wounded and yot it has to mourn as largo a re publican majority aa could have boon polled against tho Kansas City platform. Tho democrats of Ind iana have lost tho advantage of education along democratic lines; they havo mado it necessary to apologizo for democratic timidity and now they havo mot with overwhelming defeat Before they enter 'another campaign tho democrats of Indiana should 'tako their stand on tho national platform of tho party and try to earn a victory by deserving it. In Illinois Mr. Hopkins, whoso corporate con nections make it impossiblo for him to feel any interest in tho triumph of a real democracy, took charge of the party machinery and destroyed tho . party's chances at a time when republican dissen tions gave a hope of victory. In Wisconsin, where tho reorganizers dropped the money question to please the gold democrats and then dodged imperialism to please the corpo ration republicans who were alienated by La Fol lette's reform tendencies, the democratic party was badly defeated. In Pennsylvania, where Patterson was nomi nated on a platform confined to state issues, tho republicans -rolled up an enormous majority, thus proving what ought not to need further proof, namely, that national issues cannot bo ignored even in the presence of important state issues. The same experiment was tried in Michigan with the samb results. In Minnesota the republican candidate for governor profited by his fight against the rail jroad merger and scored a victory against the splendid democrat who led the democratic ticket Ev-Governor Lihd, by his personal popularity, saved the Minneapolis district to tho democratic party. - v In Colorado, South Dakota, Utah, Washing ton, Idaho and other western states the people were originally republican; they were driven away from that party by its position on the money question, but many of them have been drawn back "by tho Improved conditions which have followed an increase in tho world's supply of gold, and the gold democratic papers havo furnished them an excuse by constantly boasting that the reorganiz ers had captured the democratic party the two factions of the gold party thus working together in the Interest of the republican party as in 1896. The fight in Ohio attracted wide-spread atten tion because of the prominent part taken in it by Mayor Tom Johnson of Cleveland. The opposition of John R. McLean and the treachery of the Cin cinnati machine increased the republican majority, but Johnson has too much confidence in the justice ofnla cause to accept this defeat as final. He has already renewed his declaration of war and will yet win his fight for a more equitable distribu tion of the burdens of taxation. JJJ Cleveland Again. Ex-President Cleveland has again emerged from his seclusion and volunteered his advice to his former political associates. As usual, his speech gave more delight to the republicans than to tho democrats. Ignoring the stealthy schemes of the financiers and the insidious encroachments of im perialism, he urged tariff reform and anti-trust leg islation as the only issues before tho country, but now coma no bo so obtuso as to think that his argument would strengthen the democratic posi- The Commoner; tiori? Ho wa8 president when tho democrats had a chance to secure tariff reform and to destroy tho trusts, but ho did not help to do either. In his messago of 1887 ho did not discuss the principles involved in a high tariff; ho simply called atten tion to the injustice of unnecessary taxation. When ho sought a second nomination (after de claring against a second term in his first letter of acceptance) ho gavo an anto-convention indorse ment to a platform which surrendered the demo cratic position on the tariff question. In 1892 the platform which came into the convention with his approval was so flimsy and ambiguous that the convention repudiated it and adopted a much stronger tariff reform plank than he desired. Af ter the victory was won he refused to call an extra session of congress to take up tho subject, and be gan at once to coerce his party into the acceptance of a republican financial policy. Even when con gress met in regular session and agreed upon a bill a very poor one, but the best that could be se cured at thetime he not only refused to sign it, but gave out a letter condemning it The -inconsistency between what he now says on the tariff question and what he has done, is so glaring that he only brings ridicule upon the party when he poses as a special champion of a low tariff. But his reference to the trust "question was oven more unfortunate, for ho not only did noth ing to destroy the trusts, but the campaign fund in 1892 was so largely contributed by the corpora tions that his administration was mortgaged to them. Why, it may bo asked, should these facts be recalled at this time? Why not rejoice that Mr. Cleveland talks in favor of a few democratic poli cies, even though his record is out of harmony with his words? Because he represents that ele ment in the democratic party which once betrayed the people into the hands of the money changers, and until he brings forth fruits meet for repent ance his active support of a ticket throws suspicion upon the candidates and alienates more voters than his arguments can win. The rank and file know that he was false to his party pledges and that his subserviency to Wall street terminated what might have been a long era of democratic supremacy. Had he taken tne people's side of the moroy question, as Jackson did, he would have driven the republican party out of power for a generation; but instead of doing that he alienated the real friends of democracy and then led the corpora tion element out of the party. As a church organ ization is weakened rather than strengthened by members whose lives, give the lie to their profes sions, so the democratic cause is retarded rather than advanced by men who loudly proclaim their adherence to democratic principles and yet repu diate those principles when in office. A principle exemplified in the life is worth several on the tongue, and the distinguished ex-president's pojiti cal principle are purely lingual. JJJ Organize for ipo4. s In the late campaign the democracy in some places tried the experiment of ignoring the demo cratic national platform with a view to "harmoniz ing" the party. This plan was proposed by those who, by aiding to elect a republican president, be came responsible for the evils which they now seek to cure, but these alone would have been powerless but for the aid of regular democrats, some of wnom were tempted to waive their principles for a prom , ise of success, and some of whom were willing to allow the reorganizers to learn by experience that it does not pay to run from the party creed -and court enemies instead of friends. But whatever tho excuse it can no longer do service. Whenever the reorganizers have had control they have been unable to secure official pottage, even whore they have been willing to trade their birthright for it Tho voters have refused to be deceived by the goldrplated democracy and those who have advo- catod an "anything-to-wln" policy can no lonccr offer loaves and fishes in return for support iw feat -is no disgrace; every election brings defeat to one party. And those who believe that thev are right suffer no humiliation if a majority is recorded on tho other side; but when men are in spired only by hope of success and then fail" they die without prospect of resurrection. ' Those who accept the Kansas City ' platform as tfio party creed and labor to carry its principles into effect are neither dismayed nor disheartened by the reverses of 1902. They are battling for, financial and industrial independence; they are try ing to call the nation back to ancient and honor able ideals. Thy are not responsible for what others do or leave undone, but as for themselves they prefer to go down with their convictions rath er than surrender to the commercialism that now dominates the republican party. It is now time to organize for 1904. In every state where the reorganizers are in control of tho party machinery a league should be formed within the party for the avowed purpose of holding tho party to its principles. The fight should be made at the primaries where the votersspeak for them selves. Honest principles should be advanced by, honest methods, and the only honest way of set tling a question is to leave it to the people them selves. Let the Kansas City platform democrats get together in each precinct and county and form themselves into a league for the defense and pro pagation of democratic principles. - Those who are working for a common purpose should know each other and be strengthened and encouraged bj$ communion together. JJJ An Emphatic Reminder. During his campaign as democratic candidate for congress from a New York city district, Will- iam R. Hearst 'made us6 of an illustration thai should be carefully studied by tho administrative authorities at Washington. Mr. Hearst said: "There were 16,000 good, brave American soldiers at Santiago, and Mr. Roosevelt was one of them. Now, L wish to cite the be havior of those American soldiers at Santiago as an example of what Americans do when they mean business. Of those American sol diers, regiment after regiment was armed with old-fashioned, out-of-date, worthless Springfield muskets. And opposed to them was regiment after regiment of Spaniards armed with the best and most destructive weapons of modern warfare the Mauser rifles. Did our boys hang back and refuse to fight? Did they spend their time devising reasons for not going into battle? Did they sit down and say they would wait a few years for a constitutional shipment of Mauser rifles from Washington? "They did not They took thoir old fashioned, out-of-date Springfield muskets, and the fought tho Spaniards with them, and they whipped the Spaniards with them. "Now, my friends, when your political soldiers, your representatives, your senators, and your president, are as anxious to fight the trusts as our boys at Santiago were to fight the Spaniards, they will take the legal and politl cal weapons they have at hand, and they will fight the trusts with them, and they win whip the trusts with themand you will not have to wait for a- constitutional amend ment" ThIs Is a complete answer to those who claim that we must wait for constitutional amendments to give us relief from trust exactions. While wait ing for constitutional amendments the trusts will be growing stronger and more exacting, and forti fying their position against any onslaught of con stitutional writ. The way to fight the trusts is to make use oe the weapons now at our -command, and keep on using them -to the utmost while looking about.-fos weapons that promise to be more effective. JJJ Interesting Statistics. Bulletin No. 42 of the department of labor con tains some valuable and startling statistics co - - .i-. .