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MAY 8, 1508
The Commoner.
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Show This to Your Republican Neighbor
The following dispatch carried by the As
sociated Press ought to be read and re-read by
every republican who yet imagines that relief
from trust impositions may be obtained at the
bands of the republican party:
"Washington, D. C., April 29. John Sharp
Williams today gave the republican majority in
the house an opportunity to either permit or
refuse to permit a vote on the Stevens bill to
place wood pulp on the free list. In the course
of a cleverly humorous and satirical speech he
unrolled and held up to view the following peti
tion to Speaker Cannon, bearing the signatures
of 164 of the 166 democratic members:
" 'We, the undersigned, representatives in
congress, request each for himself and each for
each of the others, that you recognize one of
us, or, if you prefer, some other representative,
to move to discharge the committee on ways and
means from further consideration of, and to sus
pend the rules and pass the Stevens bill, or any
other bill having the effect to put wood pulp
and print paper on the free list.'
"Mr. Williams said that the two democratic
members whose names were not appended to the
petition were out of town, but efforts were being
made to reach them by wire; when their signa
tures were added, only thirty republican names
would be needed to swell the strength of the pe
tition to the proportions of a majority request,
which Mr. Williams said with good-natured sar
casm he felt sure the speaker would heed.
"After saying that only thirty republicans
were necessary to make up tin requisite number
to pass the bill, Mr. Williams declared that it
should be easy to get them because 'almost
thirty republicans had introduced free paper
bills,' he said, 'and I know every one of you who
introduced a bill meant what you sald.'-
"Quoting the lines from the old hymn:
"While the lamp holds out to burn,
The vilest sinner may return,"
Mr. Williams proceeded:
"If you have been in any manner bull-dozed
why think for a second; think of what a short
life we live here and how important it is wo
should be doing things while we live in this
brief day of our time. I express a hope that at
least thirty of you may sign a petition. If you
do not like that petition because my name Is on
it and the names of Champ Clark and De Ar
mond and Underwood and John Wesley Gaines
and all these vile publicans and sinners on this
side, get up one of your own. Wo can add the
two together. If thirty of you sign, the speaker
cannot refuse, because you together with us will
then constitute a majority of the house of repre
sentatives. Early in the session when the rules
were being adopted, the speaker was asked if a
majority of the house made a request to the
speaker whether that request would be heeded,
and his reply, as I remember it, was 'a majority
of the house of representatives will always bo
heeded by the speaker.' So if you put thirty
names to our 1C6 and constitute 196, a majority
of the house of representatives, I know that the
eminently good natured man who presides over
this house, who is so tolerant of opposition, so
patient whenever there Is a stumbling block
athwart his pathway, will bow in his most ele
gant manner with the gesticulation that is pe
culiar to him and say: 'Gentlemen, a majority
of the representatives of the American people
have a right to have their way and I will recog
nize somebody.'
"A table had been placed on the floor in
front of the stenograper's bench, and on it the
petition was spread with flankings of Ink bottle
and pen, while the minority leader, simulating
the voice and manner of a revivalist, exhorted
the republicans to rise and go forward and sign
up, pleading for 'thirty.' 'Only thirty!' and
asked 'are there not thirty who will come forth?'
sHe concluded amid hand-clapping and laughter,
indulged in by democrats and republicans
alike."
May Conclude the Price is Too High
The following editorial appeared in the
Chicago Inter:Ocean (rep.) Issue ofApril 26i
Why Mr. Taft May bo Nominated
To the Editor I do not quite understand
. your leading "editorial this morning. It seems
that a combination has been fixed up by which
the trust magnates, in return for promises of
immunity, hae agreed to support Mr. Taft and
contribute to his campaign fund. Can this be
possible? Circumstances make me only an oc
casional reader. I must have missed something.
Please explain. J. B. M.
Chicago, April 23.
Probably the editorial referred to was de
fective in assuming that its readers had in mind
a number of political and legislative incidents of
the last five or six weeks, and particularly in
assuming that they had read the Washington
dispatch published the day before.
A Washington correspondent of the Inter
' Ocean noted that the attitude of what may be
called the "Wall street interests" toward Mr.
Taft, which hitherto had been indifferent, frigid,
and 'even openly hostile, was gradually and even
rapidly becoming tolerant, pacific, and even cor
dial, and that the attitude of organized labor, as
represented by Mr. Samuel Gompers, hitherto
openly hostile to Mr. Taft, was visibly shifting
toward benevolent neutrality.
He also noted that these changes began
about the time that the Hepburn amendment to
the Sherman act avowedly framed at the
White House in conferences between the presi
dent, a New York representative of the great
financial interests, and Mr. Gompers made its
appearance in congress. He also noted that
men who figure constantly as the representa
tives of the great financial powers were now in
favor of the Hepburn amendment.
He further noted a cessation of announce
ments from the White House and from the de
partment , of justice as to Investigations and
prosecutions of trusts, about to be undertaken,
and that, the only anti-trust .prosecution ,that
was not languishing was that directed (against
Mr. Harrimau's Union Paqific-Southern pacific
combination. ., i
In a .word, there was given by this corre
spondent a picture of how immunity was being
traded off to the so-called magnates In return
for Taft support, both financial and moral.
The Inter-Ocean correspondent's picture of
the situation merely anticipated by some forty
eight hours that suggested by Mr. Arthur I.
Vorys, one of the accredited lieutenants of the
Taft campaign, when he said in Washington on
Wednesday: "We feel that the battle is over."
From certain viewpoints it may bo agreed
that the battle is indeed more than half over
that the present embodiments of governmental
power, of financial power, and of labor union
power having agreed on Mr. Taft having
formed an alliance and exchanged pledges of
amity and arranged for the delivery one to the
other of valuable considerations the battle is
more than half over so far as the nomination of
Mr. Taft is concerned.
It remains, of course, to be seen how the
American people, who are naturally put upon
inquiry whether the only result of their present
hardships is to be the nomination of Mr. Taft,
will regard this arrangement if they come to
pass judgment upon it at the polls in Noyember.
It may happen that the people will not re
gard it as sufficient compensation for their suf
ferings that they thereby have promoted Mr.
Taft's nomination. It may be that they will
conclude that the "price is too high," .despite
all assurances to the contrary. That remains
to be seen." Chicago Inter-Ocean.
WASHINGTON LETTER
Washington, D. 0., May 4. The trusting
newspaper publishers, headed by Mr. Herman
Bidder, who thought that they would get any
relief from the exactions of the paper trust
from either the Roosevelt administration or
the present congress received a most enlighten
ing shock when the CJannon bill putting over
any action' until after ithe election, and 'creating
a commission 'to study1 "the! matter was passed.
The newspaper ' publishers wanted the tariff
taken off wood pulp and paper. Congress shied
at that lest it should open the tariff issue gen-
orally. Uncle Joo sagaciously devised tho com
mission schemo to carry It over tho campaign.
This Is tho committee ho appointed: Mann, of
Illinois; Bannon, of Ohio; Millor, of Kansas;
Stafford, of Wisconsin; republicans, and ovory
one well known as a standpatter; democrats,
Ryan, of New York, and Sims, of Tonnessco.
It is quite evident that the paper trust will have
nothing to fear unless the presidential and con
gressional elections of 1908 shall go strongly
and decisively for the democratic ticket.
This paragraph from tho Philadelphia Re
cord deserves quotation: "Lot the democrats of
the country soberly ask themselves, before go
ing to Denver, and while It is yet time, what
figure they would cut before tho country and
the world with a ludicrous travesty of Joffor
sonian democracy embodied in William J. Bry
an. What prospect would they have of digging
out tariff reform from tho isms and fads with
which ho would overload it, and of making it
the vital issue of the next campaign."
It might be said that tho entrance of Mr.
Bryan upon public life In a national way was
his speech against tho robber barons of protec
tion In the house of representatives. And ho
is not a man in the habit of changing his views.
Mr. Bryan at that stood, with W. L. Wilson and
Grover Cleveland. Though when another issuo
arose Mr. Bryan and Mr. Cleveland parted.
However, it Is fair to ask about tho Record.
It used to be owned by William M. SIngerley,
was nominally democratic, defended tho national
honor In 1896, became bankrupt and its pro
prietor under most distressing clrcumstannces
committed suicide. Today It is owned by tho
proprietor of a republican paper in Philadelphia;
a high protectionist paper and Is apparently be
ing used for the purpose of disrupting the demo
cratic party as far as possible. No editor in tho
United States who understands what the owner
ship of the Philadelphia Record is, will tako
seriously anything it says concerning a demo
cratic candidate.
Of course It is true that William E. Chand
ler Is only an ex-senator. But that does not
prove that ho Is not a very keen and a very
capable observer of public affairs. His wbolo
life has been spent in political controversies and
there never has been a time when Tie was not
regarded by his enemies with respect tor his
fighting qualities.
Mr. Chandler has been openly and vigor
ously hostile to Taft. But it was supposed until
today that his plan was to support Roosevojt
rather than Taft. Today he appears as cham
pion of LaFolletto. While Chandler has no offi
cial position, he has a record of strenuous devo
tion to tho republican party. While it is not
probable that under existing conditions ho could
control a state delegation or perhaps ovon tho
delegation from his own town of Concord, N.
H., yet the vigor of his attack upon both Taft
and Roosevelt shows somewhat of the feeling
within the republican party against those twin
statesmen.
Senator Chandler declares that the Roose
velt administration has abandoned all its en
deavors to protect the people against tlie cor
porations. He insists that the changes urged
by the president and the raJJroad rate law and
tho anti-trust law are intended to Ingratiate
the republican candidate, whoever ho may be,
with the railroad and Wall Street forces. He
declares that when the president asked that the
interstate commerce law should be amended so
as to give railroads the right to make traffic
agreements it was a mere bid for railroad sup
port for Taft. In brief Mr. Chandler says at
somo length, that now when an election
is approaching Mr. Roosevelt will hark baefcf
to his position when he was a candidate once
before and invited Mr. Harriman to call and dis
cuss politics with him as one practical man to
another. As Ex-Senator Chandler, who has al
ways been a republican, puts it, "tho biggest
and highest bid for the next presidency is so
plain that ho who runs may read. Tho repub
lican party organization in tho south Is to con
tinue destroyed; tho colored voters are to bo
excluded from the polls and from republican
caucuses and conventions; the anti-trust law la
to be annihilated and "good trusts" invited to
lift their heads and flourish; tho railroads are
to be allowed to pool their earnings and destroy
all competition; existing prosecutions of trusts
are to be instituted because, all tho trusts, are to
be made tp appear reasonable; the officeholders
are always, to control tho conventions;, no pub
licity Jaws are to be enacted; nd political con
tribution for nominations and elections arfi to
be as, many, and large and secret as thpy,;were
In i904'
WILLIS J. ABBOT.
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