BiPIBPSlBi
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things pleasant for him whilp ho 13 in office but
they can not savo himffpm the 'vefdict which
j' History will pronounce against him if ho;-allows
to pass unimproved the splendid opportunity which
he now has "to render a real and permanent sbrv
ico to his country.
JJJ '
I A
Sharing the Punishment
' ' '' The mombors of a party ' stand or fall to
gether. As the rain descends upon the just and
the unjust alike; as a cyclone visits the homes of
the righteous as well as the homes of tho un
righteous; so political calamities bear with equal
severity upon all members of tlie party organiza
tion. If i. party does wrong the punishment that
follows is not confined to those who1 are' guilty
of the wrong but is visited upon all who repre
sent tho party.
Eight years auo tho democratic party put its
hand to the plow and began the WOrlc of reform.
Defeat dampened ttie ardor of some in 1900, ? but
still tho party continued to cultivate the seed sown
in 189G. Again the season was unpropitious and
by 1904 there were enough wlio "were discouraged
to' turn the- party Organization over to those who
had not been in full sympathy with the party's
purpose. This partial abandonment of the cause
of reform aroused a widespread resentment -a re
sehtment more extended than Was generally sus
pected. Evert tlie republicans with" their perfect
organization and their repeated polls underesti
mated the protest that was in preparation. The
storm wkicn, unnoticed by editors and public
speakers, was constantly gathering force, broke
on, election day and created havop everywhere. It
was not directed against the reorganizes alone,
but it hit promiscuously all who were identified
with the party in an official way. Those who had
tried to, prevent the reorganization, of the party
went down in tho general wreck with those who
were conspicuous in leading the party astray. In
nearly allif r in all the states tho state ticket
ran ahead of the national ticket To this extent
there was a discrimination against the national
leaders and in favor of the party in the state,
but this discrimination was only shown to a lim
ited extent. Alva Adams succeeded in defeating
Governor Peabody in Colorado, and Governor Toole
escaped defeat in Montana. But Governor Sparks
of Nevada failed to win the senatorship to which
his services had clearly entitled him and. which
at any othc- time he could have secured without
an effort. In like manner Bartine of Nevada was
slaughtered in the house of his friends, and Cock
roll was overwhelmed in Missouri. The defeat
of Senator Cockrell is ,an excellent- illustration of
the manner in which the Innocent are made to
suffer with tho guilty. On every question that has
como before the senate during his sei-ice he has
been the champion of the people. He has the
confidence of all democrats and the respect of
republicans everywhere. The democratie party in
Missouri was r.nyielding in its devotion tp demo
cratic principles and it loved Cockrell and yet so
great was the apathy caused by the party's action
at St. Louis and so deep was the indignation felt
by the rank and file of the party that Senator
Cockrell fell with tho national ticket; and received
the shaft that was aimed at the reprgahizers.
If the Missouri dempcrats who neglected to vote
had thought tho senator in danger they would have
, been present at tno polls, but they djd not carry
'the process of reasoning far enough to estimate
the full effect of their course. . f
Folk of Missouri iad lead enough; to escape
but. his majority Is .woefully short of what it
should have been, and he, too, would have suf
fered defeat but for tho number of votes which he
drow from the republican party. " '
more is a ressoh however, to lie drawn from.
"t
The Commoner.
the indiscriminate suffering which a grave party
-mistake causes. It teaches the necessity of active
- and earnest work on the part Of those who would
'make the democratic party deserving of success.
If the penalty fell only ipon- the guilty there
would be less care taken to put the party right
and keep it right. But when the whole party
must bear the blame for. tho action of those who
obtain control, the members of the party who
desire to- make the organization effective1 in be
half of reform, are forced to be ever upon the
alert. ""''.'. "
' Let the experience , of 1904 be a warning for
the future. Let the work of organization "begin
today in order that the party may regain at the
first opportunity the ground that has been lost.
The house of representatives can be changed two
years from now. and the first steps can then be
taken toward winning the seriate. Without crimi
nation or recrimination, let the members of the
party begin at once the work of making tlie
party a positive reform force in the country. A
great reverse has been suffered by the party the
worst since the warlet it be turned to advantage, '
as far as may be. by utilizing the lessons which
it teaches.
JJJ
The -Stay-at-Home Vote
As tho returns come in it becomes evident that
the result was due not so much to an increasing
confidence in, the republican position as to dis
satisfaction among 'democrats' with the position
taken by the democratic party. While in some
cases' this dissatisfaction1 led democrats to vote tlie
republican ticket, yet in more cases it led them
to stay at home or. to, refuse to vote on, the na
tional ticket. For instance, in Illinois Mr. Roose
velt's vote is only about 33.000 in excess of Mr.
McKinley's vote four years ago, while Judge Par
ker's vote is about 170.000 less than, the demo
cratic vote in 1900. Thirty-three thousand demo
cratic votes cast for Mr. Roosevelt would account
for the republican increase, if it is not accounted
foi by the natural increase hr population, while if
that number of democrats did actually vote for
Roosevelt it would still leave more than 140,000
votes unaccounted for. The socialist vote and
the populist vote are not yet obtainable, but it is
evident that in Illindis the democratic party is
much stronger than the returns would indicate, and
it only requires a straight-forward, honest fight
for reform to bring out that vote and put the party
in fighting condition again in that state.
In the state of Indiana eighty-two out of
ninety-two counties gave Roosevelt some eleven'
thousand votes less than McKinley had four years
ago, while the same counties gave Parker some
75000 less votes than the democratic candidate had
in 1900. Here again it is evident that the republi
can strength has not been largely Increased but
that the democratic vote did not come out.
In Iowa the total Vote this year is not "as large
as it was four years ago. The republicans have'
gained about 22,000 and the democrats have lost
about 40,000, If the entire republican Increase was
made up from democratic votes, it "would still leave
about 20,000 votes unaccounted for.
In Missouri the indications point in the same
direction. At tne time of the writing of this edi
torial it is impossible to obtain the figures from
all of the states, but if the situation in other
states Is as it is in the states already reported, the
president can not regard the result as a personal
vindication. '
If the loss in the democratic vote is not offset
by 'a corresponding gain In the republican vote
tlie'result can not be' considered as an endorsement
VOLUME" 4, NDMB13R 14
of republican policies but rather'a condemnation
of the: democratic plan- of campaign a
Thisvmatter will be considered-more at lend
when thd results ire all In, but attention is caS
to the figure given above: as indicating somethln!
of tho situation in the nation. And in this Z?
tion there is encouragement to the party it ,"
much easier to so shape the policy of the partv
as to bring back dissatisfied democrats than I
.would be to convert republicans. There is every
promise, tnerefore, of our party recovering in igog
what it has lost this year, and as the exactions of
the great corporations become heavier and heavier
we can expect an increasing revolt among repub.
licans.- - t.
Now is the time to plan for 1908! Let every
democrat buckle on his armor. Various means may
be employed for spreading democratic doctrine but
one of the best ways is for each democrat to pick
out a republican among his acquaintances and sup.
lily him -with literature. It Is much easier to make
an impression upon 'the Voters between elections
than it Is uiring the campaign. After a national
ticket has been nominated party lines are drawn
and conversions are more difficult. Let the demo
crats begin now to do their campaign work. When
a democrat reads a good book Upon economic ques
tions Jet him loan it to his republican neighbor.
When a good speech is made along democratic
lines, let each democrat secure a copy for his re
publican neighbor. Good work can be done also
by circulating democratic newspapers the news
paper being the 'least expensive form of literature.
Do-not delay; Begin at once. '
The individual's Part
in' the heat of a campaign speakers and writers
emphasize the 'government's part in shaping the
destiny of the country, and this is proper, for the
f6rm df 'government and tlie administration of the
government are matters'bf vital concern to the
pedple. Self-government is immensely superior co
government by a few. ' first, because it is moro
just, and second, because it has an educational
influence upon those, who participate in the gov
ernment. Self-government offers the greatest
stimulus to individual effort and gives the maxi
mum Of development. Just government for the
same reason produces better results than unjust
government. Unjust government discourages the
citizen against whom it discriminates while it i3
apt to demoralize the citizen whom it favors. In
justice in government is everywhere an evil influ
ence and it may he manifested in the failure to
enforce good laws as well as in the enactment of
bad laws.
m
Government should not only be fair to all
in the affirmative good that it brings, but it should
be fair as well in what it prohibits. It is well
that the citizen should understand how largely tho
country may be influenced for good by govern
ment and how seriously it can be affected by
bad government; The campaign furnishes an op
portunity to hrlng this question to the attention
of the voters, and it would be better still if the
voters were always sufficiently alert to keep the
matter in, mind.
But after' the government has done all that
it can do, the citizen to a large extent holds his
destiny in his own hands. No government can be
so bad but what thewise may' escape some of
its severity; no government .can be so good but
what: thia .'foolish may waste some of its advan
tages! . '
In the. lull that follows tbe excitement of a
campaign we 'may, therefore, profitably consider
the means by which the individual may secure
at least a partial protection- from the errors of
his government and profit by .its virtues. The aim
6f the government ought to be, to secure to each
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