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MAT 1, 1908
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assured It will Join with us In a campaign hav
ing for its purpose the spread of enlightenment
concerning the basis of the toothsome yellow
pastry. Care should be taken in the selection
of pumpkin seed, care should be exercised in
the selection of soil, and care should be exer
cised in cultivation. Without all this tho pump
kin pie of blessed memory will bo impossible.
The old yellow pumpkin that is good cattle and
hog feed is not always good for pie purposes.
The overgrown, obese and stringy pumpkin that
looks like a barrel painted yellow is not good
pie material. The smaller variety, the little
fellows with smooth exterior and solid Interior,
that are produced by careful cultivation in rich
soil, are the ones needed. Size is no criterion
in pumpkins, though we admit size has some
thing to do with the finished pie product. Un
happy the city man whose dwelling is set upon
a lot so cramped that he can not have a hill or
two of glorious pie pumpkins growing thereon,
and doubly unfortunate he who is so Ignorant
as to imagine that any old pumpkin will make
good pumpkin pies.
With the assistance of the pumpkin pie
editor of the Washington Herald we hope to
be able to start such a campaign as will result
in a more careful selection of pumpkin seed,
with a resultant crop of pumpkin pies that will
command a return to the toothsome dainty and
a desertion of the miserable concoctions and
decoctions of French chefs and amateur cooks
anxious to foist something new upon a long
suffering and dyspeptic public.
, & & & &
MR. TAFT'S "CANDOR"
The Omaha (Neb.) Bee, whose editor is
recognized as one of the chief supporters of
Secretary Taft, complains that The Commoner
has made "a complete misrepresentation of the
secretary of war." The Bee says: "In public
speeches and editorials in The Commoner Mr.
Bryan persists In the declaration that Mr. Taft
has made no announcement of his attitude to
ward the trusts and no promise that, if elected
president, he will inaugurate or continue any
legal prosecution of them."
j.. Certainly The Commoner has no disposition
to misrepresent Mr. Taft or any other man, and
so we print below Editor Rosewater's state
ment of "the complete candor and frankness
with which he (Mr. Taft) states his position
and discusses public questions." The Bee says:
"In his speech at Columbus, before
,Mr. Bryan began asking questions, Mr,
. Taft said:
" 'I would restrain unlawful trusts
with all the efficiency of injunctive process
and would punish with all the severity of
criminal prosecution every attempt on tho
. part of aggregated capital to suppress com
petition through illegal means.'
"This address was widely published
and could not have escaped the attention
of so omniverous a reader of political news
as Colonel Bryan. In his address at Louis
ville a few days ago Mr. Taft said:
" 'Mr. Bryan asks me what should be
done with the great combinations of capi
tal. He says he would extirpate trusts ,
root and branch. I don't know how he
would carry out this policy unless he means
. that he would destroy the plants that create
our prosperity. I do not believe either in
that or government ownership, but I believe
in making corporations obey the law and be
ing prevented from destroying tho prosper
ity of others or refusing to share with
others the prosperity existing in their lines
of business.'
"One of the greatest sources of Mr.
Taft's popularity with the American people
Is the complete candor and frankness with
which he states his position and discusses
public questions. He has practiced no eva-
. sion on the trust question, the tariff issue,
imperialism or anything else in which the
people have shown interest or concern. Mr.
Bryan alone appears to have failed to dis-
' cover this trait in Mr. Taft's character and
to be the only one to conclude that Mr.
- Taft lacks positiveness on public questions."
It will be seen that Mr. Taft says he would
restrain "unlawful" trusts and that he would
be quite severe upon every attempt on the part
of aggregated capital to suppress competition
through "illegal" means. But why not make
all conspiracies In restraint of trade unlawful?
And why not see to it that the people are pro
tected from men who undertake to suppress
The Commoner.
competition through cleverly dovlsed laws and
ingeniously arranged systems?
Mr. Taft was not, however, protecting that
reputation for "complete candcr and frankness"
which Editor Rosewater is building for hira
when ho intimated that those who would ox
tirpato trusts would destroy tho plants. Mr.
Taft ought to know that those who believe that
private monopoly is as indefensible in tho stat
utes of man as it Is Intolerable in tho law of
God aro the defenders, rather than tho destroy
ers, of property; they are the protectors rather
than tho assailants of Industry. Their energies
are directed at those conspiracies In restraint
of trade, those conspiracies against industry and
the very lives of men and women, which Mr.
Taft and we hope wo do him no injustice on
this point would divide Into two classes: Law
ful and unlawful trusts; good conspiracies and
bad conspiracies.
The American people havo been studying
these great questions for many years and we
believe they will not bo satisfied with tho vague
manner in which Mr. Taft describes his solu
tion of the great questions that aro stirring tho
hearts of the American people and must com
mand the serious attention of American states
men. W 1&fr tV
. A BOOK WORTH READING
Eleanor Talbot Kinkead, of Lexington, Ky.,
has issued through her publishers, Moffat, Yard
& Company, New York, a book which is well
worth reading. It is a novel, "The Courage of
Blackburn Blair," and the purpose of tho book
is set forth in tho title. A delightful love story
runs through the text and strengthens the moral
which the author has in mind. The purpose of
the book Is to present the truth that moral
courage is a higher virtue than physical cour
age, and that it is more manly to ignore an
insult than it is to resent It with violence. It
is a difficult task to convince the average person
that one can have physical courage without
using it In such a case, and yet what is civiliza
tion for if it does not result in a self restraint
which will enable us to master ourselves even
when it is easier to give a blow than to refrain
from It. "Ho that ruleth his own spirit is
greater than he that taketh a city," is tho theme
of the book, for the courage of Blackburn Blair
is just- the kind of courage of which the wise
man speaks. The habit of resorting to a fist
fight or to a revolver when an offensive remark
is made Is a habit to be discouraged, and no
publication which has recently appeared has
calculated to do more to reform- the habit than
the beautiful and touching story of Blackburn
Blair. It is earnestly commended to the readers
of The Commoner.
fr fcy &rt
IT WILL BE A GLORIOUS BATTLE
General H. Gray Otis is a badly frightened
man. In an editorial printed in his paper, the
Los Angeles Times, General Otis deals with "the
Issues and the struggle." In the beginning
General Otis says that it Is probable that Bryan
and Taft will be the nominees. Following are
extracts from that editorial:
"We have reserved for consideration last
the Industrial condition of the country and its
possible effects upon the vote. There is only
ono way to enter into a conflict at close quarters
which is wise and likely to succeed. That is
for the leaders in the fray to know exactly their
own resources, their weaknesses as well as their
strength, and to learn about the enemy's con
ditions as carefully as possible. Now it Is an
undeniable fact that the Industrial condition of
the country at the time the voters approach the
polls has an exceedingly Important bearing upon
the result. There is no doubt that the sweeping
majority for the republican ticket in 1896 was
largely due to the lamentable state of the in
dustries and prosperity of the people. Four
years later the republican party had been able
to point -out that they had redeemed every prom
ise they made in the preceding election, and that
party again swept the country with an enor
mous majority. So again four years ago the
continued happy condition of the people inspired
all minds but prejudiced r r Interested partisans
to let well enough alone.
"What are the facts at present? The first
three months of the current year shows that
the bank clearings of all the clearinghouse cities
in the United States fell below those of the same
period a year ago by twenty-eight per cent; the
gross railroad earnings were twelve per cent
less and the net earnings showed a falling off
of between twenty and twenty-five per cent.
Thero aro 300,000 railroad cars Idle this year
owing toa lack of traffic comparod with an utter
impossibility to furnish rolling stock fpr the
traffic offcrod a year ago. Now noto tho follow
ing: Tho failures In business of all kinds for
these three months of 1908 numbered 5,000,
with liabilities running to over $76,000,000.
Theso figures havo nevor been exceeded In any
corresponding thrco months in tho industrial
history of the United States. It Is estimated by
those in closest touch with tho conditions that
not less than 1,000,000 porsons aro out of work
in tho United States, taken as a whole, ono-third
of theso being railroad omployos. Iron and steel
production is now about one-half of tho normal
output.
"While this depression exists, strango to
sny tho country is exporting foodstuffs and crude
oil and its products boyond anything ever known
before. These sales run to about $20,000,000
a week. Tho crop prospects, taking tho country
as a whole, are unusually good. Tho question
is, what effect will these influences have upon
the general business of tho country between
now and tho first week In next October? If this
depression remains as it is, with business con
corns failing in great numbers, involving enor
mous liabilities in which concerns that still sur
vive stand to lose this money, tho effect upon
tho vote in November is difficult to estimato.
If, on tho contrary, the business of- tho country
should undergo a very general revival, showing
a recovory from depression moro rapid than
ever known before, the people would take as
an Important justification of republican admin
istration. "The conclusion tho intelligent mind will
reach is that the republican party confronts any
thing but a walk-over in tho fall election. Tho
status calls for tho most earnest and faithful
devotion of every good republican in tho coun
try to the party and its cause. It calls on ovory
republican to get Into tho party ranks, to kindlo
ono's own enthusiasm with tho fires of earnest
ness which are sure to spread to neighbors on
all sides, to drop all party squabbles, all factious
disputes, and to rAlly under the flag for tho
sole and undivided purpose of electing tho can
didate of tho Chicago convention to tho presi
dency. With the struggle before us, anything
llko halting, hesitating, divided ranks, will re
sult in utter failure.
"The 'limes feels keenly the uncertainty
of tho situation, tho stronuousness of the strug
gle, tho imperative necessity of all getting info
line, getting In straight, toeing tho mark and
marching shoulder to shoulder. This Is tho only
course that promises success."
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GUARANTEED BANK DEPOSITS
People insure their goods by land and sea.
The custom Is of long standing. It has not
driven capable shipbuilders and navigators out
of business, nor retarded the introduction of
improved methods of house construction, nor
yet laid a withering blight of paternalism and
socialism upon the world. In view of which we
hardly understand why a proposal to insure
bank deposits should produce such commotion.
The guaranty of deposits, as enacted in
Oklahoma or as proposed In tho Fowler bill, is
simply a system of insurance. A very small
tax, or premium, levied upon all deposits some
thing like forty cents on the thousand dollars,
we believe would have covered all losses suf
fered by national bank depositors through bank
failures. Such Insurance would not "put good
bank management at a discount."
Nobody deposits money In any bank unless
he believes It to be thoroughly safo. He chooses
one bank rather than another because it is moro
convenient or moro accommodating, or for some
such reason. He would still choose the bank
that did his business most satisfactorily, and
therein the good banker would still havo all
his advantage over the indifferent or poor one.
Every good banker ought to favor every
proposal which would improve the banking busi
ness as a whole, which would increase public
confidence in banks in general, which would tend
to make every man with any money deposit it In
some bank instead of hoarding It, which would
lessen the probability of panic among depositors
in unquiet times.
Opposition to bank-deposit Insurance seems
to us mostly the mere fear of a novelty. Sat
urday Evening Post.
r0 4W 7 W
A republican exchange says that Senator
LaFollette would bo more of a republican if ho
voted less often with the democrats. True, but
he wouldn't be right nearly so often.
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