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14
The Commoner.
x.
VOLUME 5, NUMBER 14
llclarios of monopoly now Invoke this
sontimont against restraining legisla
tion. It Is a mockery of Jofforson to
first violuto his injunction by tho
granting of special rights and privi
logos to a favored few and then at
tompt to U80 his words in opposition
to restraining legislation.
It is trno that Jefferson was op
posed to legislation which would ham
per tho Individual in tho development
of his powers, but no man pointed out
more clearly than Jefferson that one
man's rights end where tho rights of
anothor begin. No ono has a right to
injuro another in his person or in his
proport'y, and according to Jefferson's
philosophy government Is organized
by the pcbplo to protect each individ
ual in tho enjoyment of his natural
rights, and a government founded
upon Jefforsonlan principles and ad
ministered according to tho maxims
of .lofforson could never tolerate a
prlvato monopoly. While Jofforson bo
Hovod that legislation might bo carried
so i'nr ns to diecourago rather than on
courago individual effort, ho always in
sisted that it should bo carried far
enough to restrain any hand uplifted
for a neighbor's injury.
Anothor Jefforsonlan doctrine which
Is being misinterpreted today. is his
protest against paternalism. He fa
vored Iho encouragement of Individual
offort and opposed tho undertaking
by the government of work which the
Individual could do bettor. His words
have been invoked against what Is de
scribed as public ownership. In apply
ing any man's language to conditions
arising after his death, it Is necessary
to know not only what ho said, but the
reason for what ho said. Nothing is
moro unfair than to employ words In
such a way as to defeat tho reasons
which Ho back of the languago used.
.Jefferson's aim was to protect the
rights of tho individual and to give
him tho maximum of stimulus. A
prlvato monopoly, "such as public own
ership is intondod to provent, does not
onlargo tho sphere of tho Individual
or inspire him to high endeavor. The
actual effect of a prlvato monopoly Is
just tho ro verse and wherever tho
principle of private monopoly enters,
the government must operate the mo
nopoly, or violate all of tho principles
taught by Jefferson.
For instance, in tho city of Chicago
has been won the most notable vic
tory achieved thus far in the United
States for the cause of municipal own
ership, and Judge Dunne, who led the
democratic forces to victorv on t.hla
platform, was ono of tho organizers of
the Jofforson club under whose aus
pices this banquet is given. Can any
one bo so ignorant of the aims, argu
ments and principles of Jefferson as
to quote him in support of a corpora
tion which monopolizes the highways
of this great city? Can anyone be
lieve that he would subordinate his
objections to monopoly in order to
de'fond the right of a few monopolists
to reap an enormous profit from the
usflSiot streets made valuable, not by
tho capitalist but by the people of
Chicago? If Jefferson was loath to
endorse a patent-which gave a man
"a limited raononolv of n. thine whioh
,he actually invented, would he be like
ly to favor the giving ofa permanent
monopoly to men who invent npthing
- except now methods of evading taxa
tion or of corrupting councils? Noth
ing is moro consistent with 'the sup
port of Jeffersonlan, principles than the
ownorshjp and operation by tho public
of every Industry which is in its na
ture a monopoly. Whore competition
is impossible, the benefits of monopoly
must accrue to tho whole people, not
to a few. I am glad that in tho city
of Chicago tho democratic platform
was broad enough to include not only
ifcfthe, p.ubllc ownership of tho streot car
nines,, out the public ownorfthln f
flighting plants and telephone systems
itno umcago water system, I be
Jlieve. has for many years hnnn r,i
by tho city. The natural results of
rprivato ' mbtf&itol iiro, . ttst Jtt&Jtortlon
as to the prico of tho product; second,
oppression as to tho labor employed
in production; third, reduction in tho
prico of raw material; fourth, deterior
ation in tho quality of the products,
and fifth, the corruption of the 'power
which attempts to regulate monopoly
in tho Interest of the public. When tho
English parliament grants a franchise
for a private water plant or lighting
plant, It generally fixes a maximum in
come, and requires a reduction of rates
when tho maximum is reached, but in
this country tho advocates of monopoly
aro bold enough to resist all limitation
and to demand a free hand for thoso
who aro in control of the quasi-public
corporations. In tho matter of water
plants, tho cities have made great
progress, but a small percentage of the
water plants being now owned by prl
vato corporations. The taking over of
tho lighting plants has not gono so far",
but the movement is now well under
way. But few of tho cities have under
taken to establish telephone -exchanges,
but this is a necessary step,
and unless it is taken soon we shall
have the same struggle that we have
gono through In regard to water plants
and lighting plants. The sooner tho
cities begin to establish their owu
tolophone exchanges, tho less they will
havo to pay for watered stock, and in
compensation for so-called "vested
rights,"
The third Jeffersonlan doctrine that
is now being misinterpreted and mis
applied, is his argument against long
t.'mo debts. He took the position that
the earth belonged in succession to
each generation, and that a preceding
generation had no right to mortgage
thef earth beyond its occupancy of it.
If ills doctrine had been adopted it
would be much easier to deal with .the
problems of today, but it is manifestly
'unfair' to permit railroads and munici
pal corporations to mortgage the pub
lic for generations, and then to quote
Jofforson against the "Issue of bonds
when a city attempts to rid itself of
prlvato monopolies. It is better for a
city to issue bonds at a low rate of
interest and for actual improvements
than for a city to permit private cor
porations to issue bonds, based not
upon investment, but upon the power
of monopoly to extort on income from
suceeding generations. Then, too,
there is a very clear distinction be
tween a debt incurred in the estab
lishment of a municipal plant which
will yieid an income to the city, and
tho incurring of a debt which brings
no specific return. Mr. Bird S. Coler,
lato comptroller of tho qity of New
York, has brought out this distinction
and it is one that is useful in the dis
cussion of municipal ownership. A fa
ther who leaves to his child an incum
bered plant which yio'lds an income in
ivnnoo r 4-lt (rf iraf- linrkti f no innilTTl
brance,, leaves him a richer inheri
tance than he would if he left him
unimproved land. And so a city can
justify a largo indebtedness if the
money, borrowed is expended on a
plant which not only pays an interest
upon the investment, but creates a
sinking fund sufficient to discharge the
Tlebt in a reasonable length of time.
A generation would thus bequeath to
the succeeding generation not an in
cumbrance but an annuity.
And so the teachings of Jefferson,
when studied in the light of his con
trolling purpose, furnish guidance for
us today, and will furnish guidance
for ages to come. He built not for a
day or for a century, but for all time,
because ho built upon the solid rock.
Inspired by the love of his fellows ho
turned the training of a master mind
and the energies of a still greater
heart to the service of mankind. And
although his contemporaries showered
upon him tho highest honors that man
can give, he left the world his debtor
beyond the power of man to calculate.
No words or figures can measure the
value of tho gift that he bestewed
upon the race. Wherever men contend
for human rights his words strength
en and encourage. Wherever patriots
devote thomselves to the investigation
of problems of government, his re
searches and his expositions illumine
and direct. Every great forward move
ment bears the impress of his thought,
his words, his work. He stands be
fore us as the growing figure in the
sphere of politics. Warriors have won
fame upon the battlefield and have re
arranged with their swords the ma'ps
of nations, but history affirms with
Carlisle that thought, stronger than
artillery' parks, at last rules the world,
and that "back of thought is love."
Jefferson's love for mankind was
his controlling passion, and it extend
ed to generations unborn. As we cele
brate his memory on the anniversary
of his birth, we can say as those
could say who lived wheuhe did, "We
love him because he first loved us."
JUDGE PARKERS SPEECH
At a Jefferson day banquet at thef
Waldorf-Astoria, New York, April 13,
Judge Parker made the first public ad
dress he has made since the last elec
tion and in response to the toast, "The
Future of the Democratic Party." The
following is the report made by the
Now York correspondent of the Chi
cago Record-Herald:
The toast, "The Future of the Demo
cratic Party," called, for a reorganiza
tion of the democracy along lines and
upon principles moat favored in the
victorious days of Grover Cleveland.
Mr. Parker belittled the tremendous
victory of his republican opponent and
even admitted that his own defeat
"was easy to forsee and predict." He
asserted it was preceded by "division
and faction in our ranks over a period
of eight years, and they have done
their worst." Gilding skillfully from
a gloomy retrospect tho speaker grace
fully entered into a discussion of fu
ture possibilities.
Lessons from Jefferspn
Being tho orator of the evening at
u iiiuner given in celebration of the
birthday of Thomas Jefferson, Mr
Parker drew many lessons from the
great man's life and sayings. Ho es
poused tho Jeffersonlan idea as against
the frenzied and spasmodic movements
which, he said sometimes sweep ovef
a country and drag.fn their wake, the
shattered remnants or a political army.
He dubbed the free silver "craze" such
a movement, and while not mentioning
William J. Bryan by name, said that
as the head and apostle of that cause
he "was and is perhaps the most per
suasive political orator known to our
history." Mr. Parker added that this
wild-eyed chasing after a new god
"swept our party out of power in every
northern democratic stato, and they
had remained in the republican column
ever since."
Having gleaned wisdom from ' the
past, the speaker vigorously urged a
realignment of the democrats forces
under the standards which flew most
proudly in the heyday of Grover Cleve
land's power. He said that, when an
alyzed, the democratic party "in all its
history has been true to a few gen
eral ideas and policies."
Principles of the Party
The principles Mr. Parker enunciat
ed under the minor caption, "The Fu
ture Policy of the Party," as follows:
"1. The strict interpretation of the
Constitution, which implies resistance
to centralization by the federal gov
ernment because it is opposed to the
fundamental idea of our system of pop
ular government and for the further
reason that all human experience
shows that that, way danger lies.
"2. That levy of import duties and
other taxes with strict regard to tho
industrial Interests of all our people
whether producers or consumers'
whether manufacturers, farmers or
workmen, and always at rates which,
while just to all, shall be essentially
revenue-producing, thus eliminating
monopoly and favoritism.
"3. Constant, unremitting attention
to hone3t, economical expenditure of
tho taxes collected from the people;
and
"4. Non-interference in the political
affairs of other nations, thus making
entangling alliances as impossible as
they are undesirable and un-American."
The "sage of Esopus" asserted that
"these ideas are as vital as they were
in the earliest stages of our national
history." He took a sudden fling at
some theories of the party when- ho
added in his next sentence: "If as a
natural corollary they are supplement
ed by the rigid, unremitting enforce
ment of the criminal law in both na
tion and states, there is not much room
for the instrusion of outgrown cus
toms, or for new-fangled forms of hys
teria and humbug."
Pleads for Organization
Mr. Parker's next plea was for a
hat-Icing back to the era of Mr. Cleve
land and for sane organization of the
party along these lines in every state
and country of the Union. He declared
organization to be vitalr but intimated
that a popular policy would result in
organization. To achieve these two
things ho vouchsafed the following
suggestion:
"If, then, we, as democrats, prove
ourselves true to a real and genuine
reform of tariff abuses, bringing Amer
ican common sense to their suppres
sion, if we shall only apply ourselves
to this great and commanding ques
tion, with the courage, devotion to
principle and regard for the interests
of all the people which so distinguish
ed Grover Cleveland, we will not only
deserve and command, the support of
the great body of consumers, but
also invite that of progressive and in
telligent manufacturers, who, in all
historical fis.cal agitations, have finally
given "up their special privileges and
attached themselves to a system from
which at least some of the manacles
had been removed. By so doing, we
shall eliminate evils and abuses from
our industrial system and promote real
progress."
Pays Tribute, to South
As a whole Mr. .Parker's address
comprehended a wide range of objects.
He began by alluding to the recent
political disaster; he next took occa
sion to pay warm tribute to the south,
which he declared was always "solid"
for obvious reasons, which he mar
shalled in the following eloquent para
graph: "Maintaining the struggle with the
one great and almost insoluble prob
lem of our time, working under the
most serious difficulties, courageous
in the face of many discouragements,
these people havo manfully represent
ed the hopes, the ideals and the tradi
tions of their country and the logic
as well as the heroism of our national
history. If any man is, so foolish as
to ask why the democratic party has
been true to the south in its time of
trial, and why this attachment has
been requited, it must be4 because he
knows little of history and less of hu
man nature."
He proceeded next to decry what ho
described as a demand for novel meth
ods in our national .dealings. He said:
"In our early days it was deemed a
virtue when the government, like the
individual, minded its own business,
but this is now out of date, so the
proper way for a government to do
things is by inference or meddling."
He referred with seeming sarcasm to
the recent insistence that the govern-
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