The Commoner
1
WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROFRIETCR
VOL. 7. No. .5.
Lincoln, Nebraska, February. 15, 1907.
Whole Number 317.
CONTENTS
i?nSi
m -
MR. BRYAN'S WESTERN TRIP
CHILD LABOR
RATE LEGISLATION NECESSARY
INTERLOCKING CORPORATIONS
GOVERNMENT BY THE PEOPLE
RAILWAYS AND POSTAL SERVICE
ASSET CURRENCY
"THE MAKING OF THE SOUL"
WASHINGTON LETTER
COMMENT ON CURRENT TOPICS
4 HOME DEPARTMENT
WHETHER COMMON OR NOT
NEWS OF THE WEEK
CHILD LABOR
The discussion of the Beveridge Child Labor
bill has shown how easily a sound constitutional
principle can be stretched to cover a national
crime. Child labor is a horrible fact; no one will
attempt to defend it or tp excuse it. The states
have tried to deal with the subject but the manu
facturers of ones' state use", the child labor in an
other state as an argument against any law drawn
for the protection of the children-, and the argu
ment is usually successful. Senator Beverldgo's
bill invokes the aid of congress which is supreme
in matters of interstate commerce. His bill rec
ognizes the right of the state to permit the em
ployment of babies, if it will, so long as the pro
duct is sold within the state, but it recognizes the
right of the whole people, acting through con
gress, to fix the terms on which such products can
enter interstate commerce. Is this not a dan
gerous power? it is asked. Certainly, but all
power is dangerous when misused. May it not
be used to prohibit commerce? Yes, just as the
power to tax may be used to destroy, but we must
deposit power somewhere and trust the people not
to abuse it. But take the other side of the prop
osition. Has congress no power over interstate
commerce? Is congress powerless to prevent the
shipment of prison-made goods outside of the
state in which they are made? Must the free
labor of 6ne state meet competition from the
prison labor of another state? Suppose a. state
refuses to enact any laws for the protection of iis
children, are the other states powerless to protect
themselves? If the right of congress is admitted,
the only question is whether the age iixeu in the
bill is reasonable. Will any one say that fourteen
is too high an age limit for- employes In mine
and factory? If so, let him stand forth in the light
and say so let him not hide behind the constitu
tion. The democratic platform of 1900 suggested
the exercise of this very power for the annihila
tion of the trusts. If the power can be exercised
to protect independent industries from the con
spiracies of the trust magnates can it not be used
to protect the children from being dwarfed and
stunted by early toil? The constitution was made
for the people, but the predatory corporations
have converted il into a bulwark for the protec
tion of all their schemes. However, each new at
tempt to misuse and" misconstrue it, has Its edu
cational value and hastens the day of reform.
The children must be saved and the Beveridge
bill offers a safe and effective remedy for the
cruel and barbarous system of child slavery which
lias grown up in tills country;
THE UNHEEDED KNOCKING
The way the "Parly of God and Morality" is .taking care of the "helpless islanders in the
interests of humanity," developing their "industrial and commercial life and teaching them
how to govern themselves."
ALONG THE PACIFIC COAST
Mr. Bryan's Recent Western Trip
The readers of The Commoner may be inter
ested in a few notes on a lecture trip which 1 re
cently took to the Pacific coast. Mrs. Bryan ac
companied me, and we were away from home just
a month. - We went northwest through Montana
and northern Idaho to Washington; thence south
along the coast to Los Angeles and back through
Utah and Wyoming.
The cities of Billings, Livingston, Butte, Great
Falls, Helena and Missoula (all in Montana) are
growing and prospering. Billings is one of the
greatest wool-shipping points in the country and
has doubled its population in the last few years.
Livingston, being the point at which tourists leave
the main line for the Yellowstone Park, is a busy
place in the summer and an attractive little city
at all times. Butte is in the center of the great
copper producing section some sixty million' dol
lars worth of ore being taken out of the ground
in the immediate neighborhood. It is one of .the
busiest places in the west.
Helena, Montana's capital, was entertaining
the legislature when we were there and was there
fore quite lively. The city has a beautiful loca
tion and is further favored by having near it some
celebrated hot springs. Great Falls Is situated
near the falls of the Missouri and can boast of a
water power of something like one hundred thou
sand horse power when fully developed. Use is
now made of about 10,000 horse power, and the
saving of coal is estimated at $400,000 per year.
One of the greatest springs in the world the
fountains of the Missouri Is only about four
miles from the city.
Missoula has the state university and Is the
distributing center of the Bittpr Root Valley and
a large. mining country. Moscow was the only
Idaho city visited. It is situated in the edge of
the Palouse country one of the greatest wheat
producing sections of the world. The state uni
versity of Idaho is at Moscow, and it was this
that led us to visit it, for in lecturing I give tno
preference to college towns. Spokane is the prin
cipal commercial city of eastern Washington and
Is growing rapidly. It lias splendid water power
within the city limits and is the distributing point
for a large farming and mining territory.
Pullman and Cheney, which we visited are
college towns not far from Spokane, the former
having the State Agricultural College and College
of Mechanical Arts and the latter a Normal Col
lege. Wonatchee and North Yakima are In the
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