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The Commoner.
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THE COMMONER, Lincoln, Neb.
r. , , , . . 1
Paul Morton joined tho republican party "just
In timo" to bo appointed secretary of the navy.
Tho Chicago convention was little more than
an exhibition of tho complete ossification of a po
litical party.
Senator Fairbanks is relied upon to keep Wall
street in lino for tho tlckot, but tho platform ought
to sorvo that purpose.
Tho Rev. Frost who cast a chill over tho con
vention with his Invocation may be needed for
tho obsequies in November.
Maybe they wero afraid that La Follette might
mako a speech and pledge Itoosevolt to oppose cor
poration rule in tho ropublican party.
It may bo that if those union miners in Colo
rado will givo bond to vote right, or not vote at
all, Governor Peabody will allow them to remain
in Colorado.
President Roosevelt is consulting his attor
ney gonoral to ascertain if ho can bo legally com
pelled to admit that ho unjustly accused Mr Tynor
of grafting.
Secretary Cortolyou is investigating tho Slo
cum disaster. There is no danger of "bumping" a
possiblo contributor to tho campaign fund by in
vestigating that.
Wo gather from Mr. Root's speech that he and
his party aro inordinately proud of doing somo
things that they declare would bo very injudicious
and harmful to do.
The Hopkinszation of tho Illinois democracy
is quite satisfactory to the republican leaders.
This is sufficient proof .that tho Hopkins democ
racy is a spurious brand.
If tho successor to Mr. Knox manages to re
frain from doing his duty as thoroughly as Mr
Knox did, ho will have to employ an assistant
to show him how to do it.
It requires a wonderful amount of optimism
to expect a decrease in tho price of trust-made
goods this year. Tho trusts are preparing to make
up tho g. 0. p. campaign fund.
Word comes from Washington that the ad
ministration is going to take a fall out of the
beef trust. The gj o. p. is always "just going to"
on the ovo of a congressional election.
A Frenchman is about to bo disfranchised for
having offered a legislator a bribe. It would seem
from this that Franco has no trusts that insist
upon having representatives in tho French senate.
Tho New York World insistontly demands that
Judge Parker deliver a ringing note. There is no
difficulty in discovering tho "ring," and that ia
just what's tho matter with tho Parker candidacy.
Lincoln said that liberty was a right; Roose
volt says it is a gift. Blaine earnestly advocated
reciprocity. Republican leaders today have
shelved reciprocity. Lincoln and Blaino are dead
The Commonetf.
By putUng the Santa Fe official, Paul Mor
ton, in tho cabinet the president makes a grace
ful recognition of the courtesy shown him by
tho roads which furnished him a free train for
his campaign tour.
Some ono suggests that tho president is try
ing to break up the democratic party by appoint
ing its members to office. Well, if he will try it
on Hopkins and a few of his kind the democratic
party can stand it.
Eastern watering place society is shocked at
the discovery that some visitors aro wearing imi
tation diamonds. The real society people may
yet have to display their wealth by wearing certi
fied checks, government bonds and real money.
The sot speeches made in the presentation of
candidates were excellent from an oratorical stand
point, but they contained nothing to satisfy tho
patriotic citizen who witnesses with increasing
anxiety tho arrogance and insolence of organized
wealth.
Mr. Root's efforts to extract credit from our
treatment of Cuba without calling attention to
our failure to treat tho Filipinos equally as well,
merely called attention to the average republican
spell-binder's ability as an expert in vocal gymnastics.
When a tariff organ declares Mr. Knox to be
sincerely in favor of anti-trust legislation, in face
of the fact that tariff barons made him a senator,
it is a sign that either that particular tariff organ
is an ignoramus or imagines the people to bo
ignoramuses.
It was Mr. Bryan's intention to publish at
St. Louis during the democratic national conven
tion a daily edition of The Commoner, but owing
to our inability to make satisfactory arrange
ments a daily will not be published.
The St. Louis Globe-Democrat says it has
just discovered what tho department of commerce
and labor is for. Everybody else discovered some
time ago that it was the department's business
to knock the chock block from under tho wheels
of the cart carrying the trust campaign contributions.
Secretary Shaw says that if cartoonists aro
not compelled to desist from making pictures rep
resenting the trusts with their heels upon the
necks of the people, the people will soon come to
believe that it is true. We had thought that Un
cle Les had been awjiy from fche tall grass long
enough to lose some of that country innocence.
The Commoner has not authorized any one to
solicit subscriptions for a daily Commoner. The
person who solicited subscriptions at Barnard and
Quitman, Mo., and at Carbon, la., under the name
of J. B. David and J. E. Mclntire, wasa fraud,
and information as to his whereabouts will be ap
preciated. The man is describedfas rather tall,
well built and from 40 to 45 years of ago.
The British admiralty is shocked to discover
that it appointed a dead man to an Important
office and carried his name on the rolls six months
before learning of his death. That's nothing.
Over here wo appoint the same kind of men to
prosecute the law-defying trusts, knowing all the
time that they aro deceased insofar as prosecu
tion is concerned.
Mr. Watterson points out that Governor Pen
nypacker's appointment of Mr. Knox Is unconsti
tutional. This is the conclusion of a man who
has not been keeping woll posted on republican
policies. Mr. Watterson, were ho more inter
ested in fighting republicans than in denouncing
democrats, would realize that the constitution is
so full of republican shot holes that it won't hold
straw.
Tho Sf. Louis Globe-Democrat is a great hand
at telling half of a truth and suppressing tho
other half. Tho Globe-Democrat says: "Grart
uates from President Roosevelt's cabinet nevar
havo any difficulty in finding congenial and ,
crativo employment." Why did thf Globe-Demol
crat fail to cite the example of "Graduate' vw
who left the cabinet to take a congeniaTand uS
tive job in tho sonate, kindly provided fm m
by Governor Pennypacker on request fmwn
Frick, the steel trust magnate? m H a
Tho
Case Of
Moyer.
VOLUME 4, NUMBER 2
, . President Moyer of the -Western Federation
Miners was kept in prison for months without
.0 wwt, uiuugut againsr
Mm, and during all tl ln
months his jailors could not find
timo to formulate a chanS
state courts had played into the hands of !,h
military, Judge Thayer of tho federal court or
dered Moyer brought before him. TheVtho ,
who had illegally and unjustly kept Voyer n
prison suddenly found charges, and they were n
such a hurry to prefer them that they sent tLm
by telegraph and hurried to give Mover intr ti
charge of the civil courts between the time
wires to d of Judge Thayer's order and the offi
cial serving of the notice. This Moyer case shows
very clearly the insincerity of the men who cam
that al their outrages and defiance of law
civil rights were necessary for the maintenance
of law and order. ""
Why Root
Failed To
Contrast.
Chairman Root of the republican national
convention pointer! with pride to what this coun-
nj xiua uuiie ior uiiDa, and read
the letter sent by President
Palma to President Roosevelt.
But Chairman Root did not take
nnn , occasion to point out the differ
ence between our treatment of Cuba and our
rrw th FW"PP-- Tho Commoner ad
mits that there Is some difference between the
two cases. In the case . of Cuba we went down
Fl?iniinflf 1 C!5ba S H&ttl6' In the PhiPPines the
Filipinos helped us in fighting our battle. The
ones whom we helped were given freedom and in
dependence. The ones.who helped us were placed
in subjection to a new master, and given a govern
ment by Americans that Americans themselves re
belled against more than one hundred years ago
I? I'S? ?f these facts lt is not t0 oe wondered at
that Chairman Root failed to call attention to both
cases and point out the contrast.
Tho administration organ that declares tho
trusts secured the removal of Mr. Knox from tho
caomet Because they were afraid
of his anti-trust crusade, are
either foolish' or imagine the
people to be fools. This is tho
, i"m jungnsn or it. As attor
? Stal Mr Knox has refused to use the best
and chiefest weapon in Xhe anti-trust arsenal
tho criminal clause of tho Sherman law. He has
refused to use evidence of criminal conspiracy
provided him by real opponents of the trusts. In
tact, he has absolutely refused to do his sworn
duty, and tried to deceive tho people with a silly
bluff or two with injunctions to which no one paid
the least attention. Even the great merger suit
was more "bluff" than fact, because it was not
followed up and carried to its logical and legal
conclusion. That would have landed some gen
tlemen in the penitentiary who are expected to
contribute very liberally to the g. o. p. campaign
lima. Mr. Knox was made a senator because Mr.
lu'ick, Mr. Cassatt and other trust magnates real
ized the necessity of strengthening their senate
defenses, and know that it would be easy to se
cure an attorney general quito as capable as Mr.
Knox of doing absolutely nothing.
The Fo.cts
Of The
Knox Csxsc.
One difference between Governor Peabody and
the czar of Russia is that when the czar banishes
wni Th a man he remains banished.
nm ine Governor Peabody is experienc
jorkingmen ing difficulty in making his or
Stick? ders of banishment sticic, and
.. even ho has shown a disinclina
tion to Ignore the federal courts. When it came to
ignoring the state courts Peabody was perfectly
willing, realizing that the courts were controlled
by tho interests which he himself represents. But
deported miners refuse to remain deported, and
have demanded tho samo protection that the ad
ministration so boastfully declared it would afford
Perdicarls. It will be noted, however, that while
tho administration is making a great play to tho
galleries in the Perdicarls matter, it is fighting
shy of the Colorado situation. The laboring men
of Colorado have nothing but votes. The inter
ests that aro brutally deporting laboring men and
preventing help from being tendered their families
have votes, too, but also a vast amount of money, a
great deal of which must bo drawn to the re
publican campaign treasury. It remains to be seen
whether the slush fund thus raised will more
than offset the votes of laboring men who are
wise enough and earnest enough to stand together
in an attempt to put a stop to such outrages as
those perpetrated by Peabody and his military
satraps in tho name of "law and order."
41
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