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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (March 27, 1903)
"WfWWl'W',HWF flBWjW!7'?' FTpil T "ii1' " " W" TV -"It" s The Commoner. WILLIAfl J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR. rtf trij Vol. 3. No, 10. Lincoln, Nebraska, March 27, 1903. Whole No. 114. raw Wj& iHHa 2fV . nrmmnrr mmg r mwm vajESwifflbiLvs 4 dftlnR9&SUBiBFfl M jH ffime to Organize Now In an editorial in the Louisville Courier-Jour-, Henry Watteraon laments the fact that demo ts who believe in democratic principles as rep- nted in the Kansas City platform aro begin- to organize very generally throughout tho try. Mr. Watterson thinks this is a bad It is, indeed, a bad sign for those whose ition is to persuade the democratic party to diate its principles and to surrender itself the merciless keeDinc of those who stand to the trust magnates and who will cheerful their bidding. Today men, who, after having been honored the democratic party, forsook its principles to ana betrayed it into tne nanus or tne enemy, are u 7 organizing; tney expect with tne aid ana asBist- iTll .'Jb a .., i-i. rt x 1- lfl KllUtt OJL pUWOI LU.I lUtUI OblH LO rUUllUU&U LUU 1JUI I.JT ' ..... .... ... ... t ti tnat it win do so similar to tne repuDncan par that whichever party wins the interests of tha inists will be secure. By what reason, then, does any one claiming to be a democrat question the ght of democrats who do not believe in trusts !and who aro devoted to what they conceive to be ratio principles to organize in order to ge battle with those who' would strip the demo- Sratic party of all that would make it worthy of e devotion of intelligent and sincere men? The only hope of these reorganizers to win e victory in the fight for the control of the mocratic national convention is that the rank End file of the party will not organize and that democrats will not become active in the contests at the primaries. With all their enormous cam paign fund, provided by the representatives of spe- 1 interests, these reorganizers could not succeed the presence of a thoroughly aroused democ- cy. .Democrats wno reiuse to surrender tneir nvictions; democrats who insist that their party hall occupy a sincere and consistent attitude to- ard public questions, have no campaign fund to xpend, but these democrats are sufficiently large n numbers to control the national convention of 1904 if they but organize and do their duty to ttk their party in the struggle in primary elections. Every day provides new evidence of the ac tivity and determination of these reorganizers. hoy pretend to believe that they represent the pinion of the majority; but they know that their hope of success depends upon the inactivity of men gtfho really believe In democratic principles, and jwho are democrats not for revenue nor for office, but democrats from conviction. It is tlie duty of, every democrat who believes that the control of his party" should not be sur rendered to -the hands of men who would destroy its principles and corrupt its methods to engage promptly in the work of organization. In every precinct in the United States demo cratic clubs should be organized. The Commoner will furnish upon application forms of constitution and membership blanks to those who request them. "Every reader of this paper who sympathizes with this movement is urged to engage in this wor'i. As rapidly as these clubs aro organized, the secrolaiies should report the fact of organization, ii "JS .1, : w pyv. notici cf which will bo made in Tho Commoner for the information of other communities. Thh work of organization must bo taken up at once and prosecuted with all possible vigor. Republicans who do not approvo of special inter ests havt found it impossible to keep their party from the control of representatives of those in terests; and it will bo no easy task to protect tho democratic party from similar influences unless every demcorat who does not approvo of re publicanizing the democratic party enlists for tho fi?ht. 'te-'fc. JJJ wmtKmgmAimBmmammmmmtmmmmmmmmmKammmHmmmmmmmmKmmwammmmmmtmmKmmmmumi At War with Democacy. If any one doubts that bimetallism is not tho only feature of tho democratic platform to which the reorganizers object, ho has but to read an editorial that appeared in the Brooklyn Baglo of March 17. This editorial comments upon a speech delivered at Chicago by Edward M. Shepard of New York. Mr. Shepard is not a bimetalllst. Ho pointed out some things which he thought tho democratic platform of 1904 should approve. Ono of these things was "the promotion of Philippine self-government and independence." Tho Brook lyn Eaglo objects to this and says that Upon that statement tho democratic party could not carry any of the nprth, west, middle or eastern states; The Eagle says: "Another of Mr. Shopard's points involved the condemnation of tho action of United States courts In the use of the injunc tion power;" and tho Eaglo thinks that it would be disastrous for ' tho democracy to indulge in that condemnation. It declares that the attempt to unify any political party In ancagonism to tho use of the injunction power "will be as tactically unwise as it is morally amazing." The Eagle refers to Mr. Shepard's reference to the duty of the wage earners to organize for pro tection against tho powerful influences that seek to oppress them as "his apologetic language for certain dangerous forces of our time;" and tho Eagle expresses tho opinion that those proposi tions "will not commend themselves to the num ber of men necessary for tho effpctlve reorgani zation of the democratic party or to men of that quality of heart and mind to make such reorgani zation savory, defensible and successful." The reorganizers are at war with the entire spirit of the democratic national platform they are, indeed, at war with democracy. JJJ Who Cares? "What care the ma&s of the democratic party as to what men or class of men have the conduct of the campaign?" inquired ono of the speakers at the Iroquois banquet. Well, suppose J. P. Morgan is chairman of the national committee, Rockefel ler treasurer and W. C. Whitney general corrup tion fund collector? What would such a victory be worth to tho party or tho country? An ex treme case has been supposed, but what if the leaders are men who think like Morgan, Rockefel ler and Whitney, but are not so well known; will the people faro any better? Plutocracy is never so odious as when it hides under a democratic name. What About Nominees The Commoner has called attontion to tho demerits of some of tho candidates suggested by tho reorganizers, and it proposes to call attention to tho merits of a number of mon who aro worthy of tho democratic nomination. As has already been stated, there is no lack of presidential ma terial among those democrats who aro really wedded to democratic principles. It would bo possible to find In overy state In tho union men sufficiently honest, sufficiently able and sufficient ly experienced to discharge tho duties of tho office of president There aro many men who havo never been heard of before outsldo of their own states who can poll two or three million more votes than any candidate namod by tho re organizers. A man who has had no chance to make a conspicuous record, but whoso record has been good as far as made, would bo a much better candidate than a man who has made a conspicuous record on tho wrong sldo of public questions. It may bo suggested as a guiding principle that no man ought to bo considered for tho presidential nomination on tho democratic ticket about whoso 'democracy there is a shadow of a doubt When a campaign Is on our party has business enough on hand assailing republican policies and defending democratic principles. It cannot afford to spend any time trying to prove tho democracy of its can didate. And how shall wo irnow whether a candi date's democracy Is beyond question? Not merely by his perfunctory support of a democratic ticket, but by his own convictions upon tho Issues In volved. In every campaign many men voto their party ticket without being in sympathy with all or even the most Important parts of their plat form. With some men the party name is moro than a party platform; but such men could not expect to represent their party in positions of leadership. The struggle between the gold demo crats and tho Chicago platform democrats was not a struggle over gold and silver. It involved a far more Important question namely, whether tho financiers should control tho financial system in their own Interests or whether it should bo con- - trolled by tho people in the interests of the peo ple. That question Is still an issue, and must ever remain an Issue, and no man whose sym pathies are with the financiers and against tho people can or should expect to be tho nominee oiC a party that stands for the people. Tho effort to put at the head of tho democratic party a man, who bolted in 1896 would be ludicrous If It were not serious. Would the republican party think of nominating for president a man who sup ported the democratic ticket in 1896? Some of the silver republicans who were with us six years ago havo gone back to the republican party, but they have not attempted to change the party's policy; they havo simply adopted their party's position on the money question. Tho gold democrats, on the other hand, are Impudent enough to assume nc& only that they are entitled to leadership, but that they are entitled to it without in the least modi fying their views on the questions that separated them from their party. The Commoner will from time to time present tho names of real democrats whoso position on public questions cannot bo questioned and whosa mtmimnmdtimi mnitwuwwufri