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The Commoner.
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VOLUME 4, NUMBER
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Contempt Of The People
a
A most important nail in the struc
turo ol' government was hit 3quarely
on the head Wednesday afternoon,
-vvhon Mr. Bryan said in his address be
fore tho Jane Jefferson club: "There is
such a thing as contempt of tho people
and while it can not bo punished as
summarily as judges can punish con
tempt of the court, still it really do
e'orves severer punishment."
Contempt for the sovereigns them
selves ho doomed a more serious of
fonso than disrespect for tho will of
those whoso power was conforred upon
them by tho people In this lies tho
peculiar enormity of offenses com
mitted in this state during recent
years.
Mr. Bryan was right. The first of
this series of crimes lay in the refusal
qf tho legislature of 1903 to enact a
law which tho people of the state had
demanded by 40,000 majority. The
mandate of a constitutional amend
ment was defiantly disobeyed in tho
matter of an eight-hour law.
In this one unquestioned fact lay
hidden enough of dire prophecy to have
made all that ha3 followed a matter of
Blight surprise.
To defy an explicit mandate of the
constitution and to ignore the popular
will expressed by an overwhelming
vot e when such a thing is possible on
tho part of men elected to represent tho
people and make the laws of the state
gives reason to fear the worst.
Such a situation would have been
impossible without concerted, exten
sive and atrocious corruption. This
corruption must have entered not only
into the legislature after it assembled,
but must have penotrated the machin
ery of the pnor election throughout
tho state. This is merely typical of
the evil which is tho supreme menace
to all government and especially to
ropublcan institutions.
When tho people lose faith in gov
ernment a3 tho source of justice and
equity, as the embodiment of tho com
mon interests and of law which applies
equally to all, then Indeed is the crisis
sorious.
Officials who uso tho machinery of
government for tho private interest of
but part of the people are assuming a
responsibility of awful import.
Do they realize tho arguments urged
by those who 3eek to alter the basis
of society, of those who insist that rev
olution is necessary before good can bo
accomplished?
"What folly it is," they say, "to talk
of improvement through the govern
ment and laws you have today! The
officials of government are but tho paid
tools of corporate wealth. If not paid
outright, they are' so infected with tho
prejudices of property interests, are so
impregnated with the passions of cap
italistic partisanship that they can not
even pVetend to do equal justice to all.
Yet you continue to trust to such seeds
as constitutional righi3 and equality
before the law."
Such arguments have little weight
when incorruptible legislatures pass
laws for the weal of all the people;
when executive oincers enforce the
laws without passion or prejudice, with
equal justice to all parties concerned;
when courts evince absolute superiority
to partisan or corporate bias.
Then the loyal citizen who seeks to
improve present conditions by earn
est effort for gradual reform can de
nounce the sceptical with confidence.
But let the time ever come when
the average citizen can not trust his
government, whether of city, state or
nation; trust it to be true to organic
law, to equity and to impartial justice
between man and man, and the founda
tions will rock beneath this republic
The desire to purge the electorate of
this city and state from fraud is one
which, should be encouraged. Denver
News. '
test embodied in Bryanism is founded
on truth and -justice. Dr. Schurman
shows, too', how much moro real sym
pathy there is between certain features
of Bryanism and certain features of
republicanism than there 1s between
tho radicalism and the conservatism of
the old democratic party. We get a
hint, finally, of the enormous political
strength a combination of tho radical
elements of the two parties would pos
sess if those elements could be con
solidated in one party and so led as to
command the support of the middle as
well as the lower economic strata of
our population. But the fact that the
radical democrats are separated, from
that portion of the republican party
most in sympathy with them Is a car
dinal feature of the political situation,
and illustrates once more1 the force in
practical affairs .of the old Latin prov
erb, "Divide et impera." Springfield
Republican.
"Tory Democracy" In America
"A surprising, indeed, a startling
phenomenon," was the increased so
cialist vote and tho abstention from
voting of moro than a million radical
democrats at the last election, re
marked President Schurman of Cornell
university to the merchants of Fitch
burg Monday night. "Is it not." he
then inquired, "in its quiet, peaceful
way, ju3t as significant as the red
liufc wuiun wuveu last weeK. in i,ne
streets of St. Petersburg? Is it not,
liko that, a protest of good and- honest
citizens against what thoy believe to
be injustice and the violation of the
rights of man?"
It is interesting to find a college
- president taking this view and proceed
ing, as Dr. Schurman does, to advo
vate substantial concessions to the rad
ical sentimont of the country. The
democratic stay-at-homers seem to
have had their votes counted, unof
ficially, without going to tho polls.
They aro being taken into account by
thinking men, and their influence prob
ably is being felt today, as they had
not dreamed that It would be, in the
government of the country and in the
formulation of tho policies of the rul
. ing party. Dr. Schurman is chiefly
worthy of attention at this time be-
cause he represents a certain class that
will never openly train with radical
elements in politics, especially in elec
tions and- campaigns, and that always
supports the candidates of what may
be called tho vested' ruling power of
the land. Yet his utterances are prob
ably representative in a peculiar sense
of that section of opinion in the repub
lican party which has the most pre
science, intelligence and freedom from
the domination of selfish and monop
olistic interests. It is the shrewd, far
seeine onnortunist attitude nf tho rM
time statesman who was tho firaf tn
learn from the experience of mankind
that- "if there be not revolution there
must be reform."
And so we find the president of Cor
nell speaking favorably of just so
much socialism as may be embraced in
the municipal ownership of water
works, gas works, electric lighting
plants, tho telephone system and street
railways. He demands public protec
tidn from monopoly and, especially,
government control of transportation
rates on railroads. TTo r-niin ?,. 0i
revision in the downward direction,
and he concedes the justice of the In
come tax that Mr. Bryan Insists upon
;;in any event," says Dr. Schurman,
I beg you to remember that if you
would check the development of radi
calism and socialism now so imminent
ou uiubL sausiy tne demands for jus
tice in taxation which are made by
the supporters of Mr. 3ryan, Mr. Wat
son and Mr. Debs." Nor does Dr
S'churman fail to advnnnto tho ia,
pendence of the Philippineshere
again speaking for those who think as
he does on that question, yet who have
invariably voted for the party that was
responsible for the conquest of the is
lands. Now speeches like this from a re
publican furnish considerable insight
into political .conditions in America.
It is remarkable how far tho admis
sion goes that much of tho great pro-
Calling: a Halt on the Usurer
Th. supreme court of the United
States has struck a blow at usury, on
a case coming up from a Missouri
court, that will doubtless have its ef
fect so far as banks are concerned.
The case as wo find it stated in a con
temporary is one that was brought
by the bank to collect a note of $20,000,
with Interest at 8 per centx, and was
resisted on the ground that" the prin
cipal of the original note, which was
for $15,000, but compounded interest
on the first note and also interest
charged on an overdraft, a new note
having been made to include all these
charges. The court held that the bank
must forfeit all interest since the mak
ing of the new note and could collect
only the original $15,000 and interest.
This may have a deterrent effect on
those banks which charge and try to
collect usurious Interest, but there are
worse sinners in this respect than any
of the banks are. If some way can be
found to suppress the loan sharks who
ourish in every community it will
prove a blessing to many an unfortu
nate. When one of these gentry lends
money on good security, charges 10 per
cent a month as in torost nnii ofi-on
most of the principal has been paid
takes the property pledged as security
that is the kind of business that
needs to be taken in hand. It is going
on all over tho country, and though
the operations may usually bo p.nminnr-
ed on a comparatively small 3cale they
are none the less burdensome on those
who are forced by necessity to submit
to them. As a general tning those who
borrow from banks are not forced to
accept any conditions imposed on them,
but the poor borrowers are often so
hard pressed that they must accept any
terms and then the blood is squeezed
out of them without mercy.
In all ages the usurer has been un
popular, and in all ages he has flour
ished. The great cause of complaint
against him Is that he takes advantage
of the necessities of his fellow beinra.
There have been Shylocks at all times
and In all countries. Even the savage
practices the art and squeezes- his fel
low savage. They are a class who be
long exclusively to nn "J 7
no sect, for they are in anof them
and of all of them. When a man S
prosperous he can afford to laugh at
them. When he reaches his last penny
when he has exhausted the last Re
source he finds some one ready to help
him-for a consideration. The pound
of flesh must be the penalty, ana ?ew
rSethltS,Parment If th law can
reach the banks it ought to reach 'the
lesser offenders.-New Haven Union
Why We Grow Old
Bitter memories of a sinful , life
which has gone all wrong make prema
ture furrows in the face, take the
brightness from the eyes'and the elas
ticity from thfi Ston nn1 i..
life sapless and uninteresting
Wo grow old because wo' do not
know enough to keep young, jUst aa
wo become sick and diseased becausa
wo do not know enough to keep well
Sickness is a result of ignorance and
wrong thinking. Tho time will come
when a man will no moro harbor
thoughts that will make him sick or
weak than ho would think of putting
his hands into Are. No man can bo
sick if he always has right thoughts
and takes ordinary care of hi3 body, if
ho will think only of youthful thoughts
he can maintain his youth far beyond
the usual period.
If you would- "be young when old"
adopt the sun dial's motto "I record
none but hours of sunshine." Never
mind the dark or shadowed hours. For
get the unpleasant, unhappy days. Re
member only the days of rich experi
ences; let the others drop into obliv
ion. It is said that "long livera are great
hopers." If you keep your hope bright
in spito of discouragements, and meet
all difficulties with a cheerful face, it
will bo very difficult for age to trace
its furrows on vour brow. There i3
longevity in cheerfulness. Success.
The American Englo
Our bald-headed eagle, so-called be
cause the feathers on the top of his
head are white, was called the Wash
ington eagle by Audubon, the great
naturalist. Like Washington, he is
brave and fearless, and as his name
and greatness are known tho world
over, so can the eagle soar to heights
beyond others.
The eagle was adopted as tho emblem
of the United States in 1785, since
when it has been U3ed on the tips of
flagpoles, coins. United States seals,
and on the shield of liberty Globe-Democrat.
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