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The Commoner.
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THE COMMONER, Lincoln, Neb.
A STATEMENT FROM MR. BRYAN
Lincoln, Neb., July 23.
To the Readers of The Commoner:
My candidacy makes it necessary for
me to suspend editorial work, and I desire
to have it known that I should not be held
personally responsible for matter appearing
in The Commoner during the campaign, ex
cept that which appears over my signature.
My brother, Mr. Charles W. Bryan, who
has had charge of the publication since its
establishment, will assume control until No
vember, and the associate editor, Mr. Rich
ard L. Metcalfe, will, during that time, be
editor.
. The Commoner will publish such speech
es, letters, etc., as I may prepare for the gen
eral public and the readers of The Com
moner will have full and accurate informa
tion as to the issues discussed. I bespeak for
the paper, the cordial support which, from
the beginning, has made my connection with
it so pleasant.
All profits from The Commoner, over
and above actual expenses, from now until
election will be turned over to the demo
cratic national committee for the benefit of
the campaign. WILLIAM J. BRYAN.
TO COMMONER READERS
The necessity for Mr. William J. Bryan's re
tirement from active participation in The Com
moner's editorial work, will be readily under
stood by every one who appreciates the vast
amount of work devolving upon a candidate for
the presidency. The change, whilo relieving
Mr Bryan of responsibility he should not boar
and of work which, with his othor important
duties, should not bo required of hi i
eayo The Commoner free to discharge its duty
in thejarge field it occupies. . y
Free from tho embarrassments which, with
Mr. Bryan as editor, would bo manifold in a
campaign where ho is i.A .ii,iJ " mT1. i11 a
SSwwS".W'0 S' ta' "s?
Commoner ma : depend upon Vthat C,,Z
w 1 faithfully alhon to the gfSit nrincln ln??i
'" uiiunnugoa ana no opportunity
The Commoner.
tojimprovo tho paper and to make it a powerful
agent for:popular government 'will be ignored '
Tho Commoner will keep its readers in
formed as to Mr. Bryan's movements; will print
his speechos and letters and will occasionally
havo signed articles from his pen.
Tho lack of democratic dailies must bo
supplied through tho weekly press and Tho
Commoner will bo in a position to contribute
materially to tho voter's fund of information.
Commoner readers may depend upon it that
this paper will discharge its duty during the
campaign of 1908, meeting every reasonable
expectation so far as honest, energetic effort
is concerned.
It is desired that The Commoner keep in
touch with the members of the democratic or
ganization and officers of democratic clubs
throughout the Country, and the co-operation of
these officials, as well as the assistance of every
reader who may have some point which prom
ises to bo helpful in the fight, is earnestly
solicited.
The subscription price of The Commoner
during the campaign will be 25 cents. Those
who believe that The Commoner is doing a good
work aro invited to aid in the effort to increase
its circulation.
Itft tV
THE INCOME TAX
In its issue of July 14, tho New York World
prints an editorial entitled, "Abandoning the
Income Tax." The World editorial follows:
"The World can understand the silence of
tho republican platform in regard to an income
tax. The republican party represents the pluto
cratic elements opposed to such a tax. The men
who would contribute most to the support of
government under such a system of taxation
aro republicans. Most of tho men who own
franchises, who havo special privileges and con
stitute tho real capitalist class are republicans.
Men like Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Harriman, Mr.
Morgan and Mr. Schiff are naturally against an
income tax, and the republican platform, with
fine disregard of all Mr. Roosevelt's shrieks
about swollen fortunes, expresses by its silence
their disapprobation of such a system of raising
revenue. But why should the democratic party
have thrown it over? Mr. Bryan himself voted
for an income tax while a member of congress.
He always professed to believe that a law could
bo drawn which the supreme court would sus
tain, just as it twice sustained previous acts
providing for an income tax. To wait for a con
stitutional amendment is to wait for years, per
haps for a generation. A tax on the hundreds
of millions of annual income of the wealthy
would go far toward relieving the burden of
taxation now borne by people with small incomes
or almost no incomes at all. There Is no more
just or equitable way of raising public revenue
The democratic party ought to have taken a
strong position on this question. What excuse
can it make for surrender?"
One of the planks in the democratic plat
form is as follows:
"We favor an income tcx as part of our
revenue system, and we urge the submission of
a constitutional amendment specifically author
izing congress to levy-and collect tax upon indi
vidual and corporate incomes, to the end that
wealth may bear its proportionate share of the
burdens of the federal government."
When, in 1896, the democratic platform
favored income tax legislation without waiting
for an amendment it was charged that tin nartv
intended to pack the court. Now when an
amendment is asked for, the World calls it an
abandonment of the income tax. It is hard to
please some people. l
TIIE NOTIFICATIONS MEETINGS
The formal notification meeting for- Mr
' ASt"1 PlaC nt hlS h0me rview on
Mr. Kern will .be notified at Indiananolis
oarly in September. Mr. Bryan will Si Pn!
Kern notification meeting. attend the
&&&&
"OLD 1808"
On Saturday, July 11 thn 3f ti t
public celebrated' the one 'h mdredth anni?'
sary of its establishment. As the M Isaourf ri"
zettc i was founded in 1808? and Tc the bolder"
generation now passing from tho stage it was
affectionately known as "Old 1808." Durtng
tho century of its existence tho Republic hit
aimed h Iirh and nnnnmniui.,.i ".., '"""r. ,,aB
. tors upon it, ecoml century tronor m" be""
tor than .ovqr boforo. Itu history hau be fnii
t of stirring Incident. ,t lm 4ronlcloS"f""
VOLCME 8, NUMBER 2
4 wars in which American arms took part; it has
been burned 'out, gone through floods and con!
quered many obstacles, and yet it has never
missed an issue. Its centennial number was a
triumph of the art of .making newspapers The
Commoner congratulates "Old 1808" upon its
rounding out of a century of success, financial
and social, and wishes for it added centuries of
usefulness.
t i& t&b
LOOK OUT, MR. SPEAKER
Hon. H. C. Bell is going to contest tho
election of Speaker Cannon in the Danville dis
trict. Mr. Bell is a Simon pure democrat and
a great campaigner. As his platform will prob
ably endorse all of the reforms that were turned
down in the republican convention, he is likely
to give "Uncle Joe" a sure enough race, anil
if he is elected, that district will have a brand
of unadulterated democracy.
t f2r
CLEARLY NON-PARTISAN
The Philadelphia North American (rep.)
says: "Whatever the shortcomings of the re
publican platform they can not be charged to
Taft but whatever the democratic plat
form lacks is chargeable directly to Bryan."
Clearly the North American's always ad
mirable and somewhat famous non-partisan edi
tor is off on a vacation.
Men, not dollars.
'The voice is the voice of Sherman, but the
hand is the hand of the trusts.
The Washington man who was treed by a
dead bear might find some consolation by ad
dressing Mr. Harriman.
The solution of the slum question does not
lie in the free distribution of milk and ice. The
abolition of the slum is the only solution.
It seems that Chairman Burrows forgot to
tell tho convention about the "publicity letter"
he received from Mr. Taft.
'You have a beautiful country," said Cardi
nal Logue to Mr. Rockefeller. The cardinal not
only has an eye for the beautiful, but a rare
discernment as to ownership.
When Mr. Sherman is elected he will be
the tenth vice president from New York," says
the Milwaukee Sentinel. The Sentinel is much
better in dealing in futures than it :is in chron
icling the present.
1 , Yi
A Philadelphia .man rocked the boat and
the young lady accompanying him ', promptly
knocked him into the river with ,a, spare oar.
The Carnegie hero commission' is respectfully
asked to take notice.
The g. o. p. .platform refers to the emer
gency currency bill as a "temporary enactment."
O, yes; so temporary that it will be replaced
about the time the. tariff is-revised by its friends
in the interest of its victims.
The Milwaukee Sentinel notes that Uncle
Sam -is goiig to provide immigrant labor to
farmers and adds: "Wise Uncle!" .But how
about providing jobs for some hundreds of thou
sands who are not immigrants?
Mmer Gould-de-Castellane de-Sagan says
wo are lacking much on this. side of the ocean
that foreign society possesses. Every .once in
a while somebody says something about, this
country that makes us prouder than ever that
we aro permitted to live in it.
Will, the Roosevelt admirers who are sup
porting Mr. Taft bo deceived, or w?" the Wall
Street supporters of Mr. Taft be deceived?. The
answer to this may be found by carefully study
. ing and finding out how often Well Street has
been deceived in the candidate it supported.
The republican leaders are now engaged in
fixing their speakers' list so the ones who point
to Paft as the man to carry out the Roosevelt
, policies will bo, dated, for the west, while those
who will point cui that ffiaft's election, ineans the
end of Rooseveltism" will' be .datedin tlie east.
J
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