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The Commoner.
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11 communications to
THE COMMONER, Llacels, Nt
Crime is crime, whether perpetrated under
tho guise of "duty" 'or '"destiny."
r
King Cotton recently stepped baok on his
throne and remained long enough to recall how
ho used to feel in tho good old days.
When a man feels called upon to, make a
Boven-column apology it is a sign that, ho realizes
the need of making an apolQgy of som'o kind. .
Doubtless John Bull could give Czar Nicholas
some valuable pointers on this thing of going to
war with a people who fight for the preservation
of their country.
. Salt Lake is said to bo drying up, and., doubt
less, Mr. Hanna wishes that a celebrated citizen
of the metropolis close by that .lake "would do
tho same thing.
Iowa's state house is in ruins, but the. Are
was not set by any of the state officials working
themselves up to a fever heat in the effort to curb
the corporations.
Mr. Hanna's friends are quietly insisting that
the lloosevelt boom will yet havo to seek tho
services of the incubator that Is caring for that
six-ounce Colorado baby.
Sultan Adbul namfd wants it distinctly under
stood that he will promptly agree to- anything
that dpes not require him to put up money or
stop doing as ho pleases.
President Roosevelt gave the varied interests
of tho south just seven lines in his message. But
this is fully as much as ho expects to get from
the south next November.
Mr. Root bows , and declares that so long as
people bark at Wood ho wil": defend him, But
what will Wood do when Root leaves, and carries
liisHrunk back to New York?
'"- "Vexatious Indisposition" is a new one, but
it seems to fit the case of the administration in
the matter of prosecuting the grafters and -.violators
of tho anti-trust law. - '. :
Secretary Cortelyou say's tho government
should establish a great rquarUim at Washing
ton.' If the government furnishes she tanks
Wall street can furniah the water.
The New York milllonair who says ho trav
eled 9,000 miles without finding any evidence of
hard times should take a run over ihto tne steel
and tin plate manufacturing districts.
A Pennsylvanian carved a car but of n chunk
of coal, surmountec it with tho national colors
and presented it to President Roosevelt. Owing
lo tho fact that tho man uid not make tne flag
tho gift was accepted with effusive thanks.
Mr. Hanna was re-elected senator on the 13 th.
By providing for all contingencies before electing
tho legislature, Instead of afterwards, Mr, Hanna
saved himself considerable annoyance and -incidentally
made it possible to take a run homo from
Washington occasionally, ,. - .
The Commoner.
Tho governor of New Hampshire draws four
salaries, but even that is not nearly so bad as
the habit some postal department -mployes iwo
contracted of seizing questionable perquisites.
This is campaign year, and democrats who are
loyal to democratic principles should bo rousing
themselves to a realizing sense of iho duty they
owe to themselves, their party and their country.
Among other precautions against panics in
theatres and other public places, it might bo well
to invent something that will squelch the fool who
yells "fire," and squelch him, too, before he has
time to yell.
The Commoner's subscription campaign pro
gresses at a gratifying rate. Every uemocrat who
is opposed to the "reorganization" of demociacy
should lend his assistance in making the campaign
an unparalleled success.
Mr. Carnegie insists that England would give
vast sums of money for about 7,000,000 of our
negro citizens. General Alger opines that he Is
ablo to give England a tip oil how to secure" a
large number at much less rate per head.
Tlio Sioux City Journal says that Iowa has
more commissions than she needs at the present
rate of taxation. What has the esteemed Journal
to say of the modern republican pian of refer
ring disputed questions to commissions that make
places for discredited politicians?
Tho Washington Post advocates "sending the
poor to the country." That just what the pro
tective tariff is doing for us. We get. the .poor
sent to this country to compete with American
workingmen, and the manufacturers hold up the
purchasers in tho home market under the plea
of protecting American workingmen.
&
& For the convenience of those who are '&
& presqrving files of Tho Commoner an in- &
& dex of Volume 3 has been prepared. -It is '
& too long to publish in a regular issue of ' C
t the paper, but thoaowhc -deehc it-mny "
t secure a copy by sending a 2-cent stamp. &
& Address, The Commoner, Lincoln, Neb.
0
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&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& tg,
An Oklahoma territory leader of The Com
moner writes: "Is it possible to iscertain ap.-
proximateiy tne percentage of
native born American vote that
goes to tho republican party in
a presidential year? A good
democrat, -niirn it a., nhmit nnr.
third by counting the foreign and negro vote that
usually goes to that party P)ease give us what
information you have, upon the question." If any
Commoner reader is able to supply this informa
tion, it will be accepted with thanks.
What
is tho
Percentage?
Hawaiian's
are
m
A v Honolulu, Hawaii, reader writes: . .You
may judge of the conditions here when I can say
iuut 1 nrmay ueneve that if a
referendum were submitted to
the voters of this territorv.
Weary. whether they wish to continue
under territorial conditions or
return to an Independent form of government
with possibly a protectorate declared by uncle
Sam, tlie latter proposition would win two' to
one. This is not because the Hawaiians cannot
be loyal to our American institutions, but largely
because up to the present time they have seen
, very little of the American spirit in tho conduct
of our territorial officers."
Disastrous
to be
Right
A TCflnt.liP.lrv ronrlor ennrla f an,, n.
-J - .w uwua ww ami vjuuaiuaner a
circular issued In behalf o! one of the candidates
xvii tuo ucmuuruuc nomination
m 1U00, in which circular, re
ferring to this candidate it was
said: "Ho was not entirely in
rvmnntW wffvi ft,,, ,1 .,
platforms of 189G and of 1900, but he supported tho
democratic ticket in both of these disastrous con
tests, and stood by the party." This Kentucky
reader adds: "I havo no patience with a man
who seeks a democratic nomination on the crotind
that he has not agreed with the party. Wo made
a great fight in 1896 and agait in 1900, and polled
more votes than were ever polled bj the party
VOLUME 3, NUMBER 68.
before. It does not seem to me" that n
thinks the cirSrts we thon mZa wo' "dE
is the proper man to-lead the party tc , victory.-
Jefferson
and
Jackson.
An Havana, Ark,, reader sends an extras
from a statement made by Secmta ,..
Treasury Shaw, m which re
ferring to the democratic 'posi
tion on the money question, Mr
Shaw said: "U hoy said it was
Jacksonian. Tt wn . , .
son was a gold standard man. They said i S
Jeffersonian. It was not Jeffdrson is on recS
as-favoring the single gold standard." pSm
Mr. Shaw has forgotten that Andrew Jackson
signed a bill providing for in free and unlimited
coinage of gold and silver at the ratio of 16 to 1
and he would find it just as difficult to prove that
Thomas Jefferson was a single gold standard man
as he would to prove that Andrew Jackson was a
monometalllst. ..;' au
. A Fort Worth, Tex., reader of The Commoner
sends a newspapqr clipping sh'owing a Washing
Thft Ir,ri. , ton dispatch claiming that .lie
lno Fight result of the November election
on Tom is "the elimination of Tom John
" Johnson. son not. only from tho national
ft, lit.,' councils of his. party, but irom
the leadership of his own- state." This reader
says: "I would like to know by whom such pub
lications aro started or given out to the newspa
pers and for what purpose such thoughts are put
in the daily papers." Eyioently dispatches of
this character emanate from those' who are inter
ested in maintaining special privileges, and aie
therefore opposed to the participation n politics
by such men as Tom Johnson., It is plain, how
ever, that so long as there are gigantic eviis in
government, it will bo rather difficult to eliminate
from politics Btrong and faithful men like the
gentleman from Ohio.
The Party
Should be
Faithful
A Des Moines (la.) reader of Tho Commoner
writes to say that when two years ago the demo
cratic candidate for governor of
Iowa was defeated, it was
claimed that it was because ho
ran on the Kansas City plat
form; that at. ae Jast Iowa
convention, the Kansas City platform was? re
pudiated and a good democrat who had supported
tho ticket loyally was nominated for governor
with the result that he was beaten practically by
the same plurality that was rolled up against the
party two years ago. This writer adds "When
ever tho democratic party hesitates or is afraid to
advocate an issue, that will as they say disturb
the business interests, or, in other words, the
trusts or banks of issue that receive special priv
ileges at tho hands of tho government, U may de
pend upon being defeated. To succeed, democracy
must champion the cause of the masses and open
ly and fearlessly fight privileged classes wherever
found, whether it is tho steel trust, the sugar
trust or the money trust, and when demociacy
does this, it will in the end be successful and it
is the only success worth winning.
In the
District of
Columbia.
A reader of The Commoner asks: "When were
the citizens o the District of Columbia disfran
chised? Wrat were rne causes
that led to said disfranchise
ment? Did the :Jtizons of the
District have full franchise, in
otlmr words dirt thev VOte lor
president; aid they have a congressman or were
they entitled to one; also, did they have a local
self-government? I claim that the District oL
Columbia had the full franchise until the col
ored people came after the war and threatened
to outvote the white men." The District never had
full franchise. In the beginning, tho authority
was placed in the "-ands of three :ommissioners.
Later, Washington was incorporated and its gov
ernment was arranged by the creation if a presi
dent and a council, tho former appointed by trie
president and tho latter chosen by Ihe people, in
1820 a mayor to be elected by tho people was sub
stituted for a president. In 1871 a territorial gov
ernment was created, the governor and upj-er
house being appointed by the president, and no
lower house selected by tho people. In 184, tins
system was abolished and a board of three com
missioners was provided. In 1878, congress pro
vided for a permanent government. The aisincu
never had a congressman, and not being a siaw
was, of course, not entitled, to one. It is da.mea
that the large number of negroes in the w-j;
had something to do with tho complete disirau
chisement Jn tho District of Columbia.
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