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The Commoner
WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR
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VOL. 9, NO. 25
Lincoln, Nebraska, July 2, 1909
Whole Number 441
ALDRICH'S FAITH IN REPUBLICAN PARTY PERFIDY
.
In its issue of Monday, June 7, the Kansas City Star, a republican paper,
printed this editorial: "The faith of Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich in the perfidy and
temerity of the republican party and in the subserviency of the people to green
goods politics has to be witnessed to be believed. The history of the American
. government furnishes no parallel to the insults which are now being heaped upon
the doctrine of popular government by the senatorial boss from Rhode Island."
. ,. .- , . .. II I ' ! !! ... I , , '
Lest We Forget
A word to college students: As you enter
upon your life work do not forget that you must
have some part in. the conduct of the govern
' .anent under which . you live. What part will
. you take? Our government rests upon the con
sent of the-gbverned, and while sbmq of its de
partments are less responsive than others to, the
will of the people, all of the government and
all of its functions are, in the end, a reflection
pf the intelligence and virtue of the people.
Will you help to perfect the government ana neonle's ltfiam.vaiidtho fteht was a
makeIt an'irimfuhint for good, or jSrtlf okd
your indifference, permit It to become tliQgdilt through th platf0rm adopted at Chicago, where
OI me seiliBH mm uhv;i.uijujivu9. nvmmv.
that in every country some one of the various
parties is nearer to the peqple than any other
party some one more anxious than the others
' to keep the government within the control of
the people. Ally ybursclf with that party for
It will be the growing party. All over the world
the trend is toward popular government, and
sooner or later victory crowns every movement
that has for its pbject the bringing of the gov
ernment nearer to the people.
In this country two parties stand out beyond
all the rest in membership and influence the
republican party, which is in control of the
federal government and in control of most of
the state governments, and the democratic
party, which polled six million, four hundred
thousand votes at the last election. No third
party polls as many aB a half million votes.
One of these parties democratic or republi
can iS nearer to the people than the other.
it you will examine the record you will find
that at the present time the democratic party
is the people's party and the republican parly
the representative of monopolistic greed. Do
nqt allow yourself to bo deceived by the fact
that a few of the republican leaders are work
ing for reform and that a few of the democratic
leaders are betraying their party. Parties must
be measured by the opinions that prevail among
the rank and file rather than by the opinion
that is represented by a few leaders. The voters
control; they can change their leaders more
easily than the leaders can change the rank
and file.
The voters of the democratic pirty spoke at
Denver last summer, and they spoke in no un
certain tones. The platform adopted at Denver
CONTENTS
ALDRICH'S FAITH
LEST WE FORGET
STILL AT SEA
INCOME TAX AMENDMENT
WORDS WORTH REMEMBERING
THE VOTER'S SCRAP BOOK
EDUCATIONAL SERIES TAXES THAT
" ROB THE COMMUNITY
- THE TARIFF IN THE SENATE
PRACTICAL TARIFF TALKS
PATHETIC WAIL FROM A REPUBLICAN
. ' NEWSPAPER ,
MR. BRYAN AND. THE SENATE
SKETCH OF "BOSS" ALDRICH
. HOME DEPARTMENT . . . , ,
NEWS-OF ,THE WEEK V " . '
a.'..
reform propositions were voted down ana a
platform written which can not be construed
otherwise than as a deliberate attempt at de
ception. That deception is now being carried
out with a majority of the republican leaders
actively supporting the deception.
For forty years the republican party has lived
upon the reputation which it made during the
war. It has claimed a monopoly of intelligence,
virtue and patriotism. It has charged the dem
ocratic paTty with being opposed to the union,
and yet history shows that the doctrine of seces
sion was actively discussed and endorsed by
prominent statesmen in Now England fifty years
before it was presented in concrete form by
the states that joined in the confederacy. Not
only did the doctrine of secession have many
supporters in the north, but the democratic
party furnished one of the earliest champions
of the union. Andrew Jackson when president
denounced the doctrine of nullification and de
nied the right of a state to secede. He con
cluded his message to congress (January 16,
1833) on the South Carolina ordinance with
the following language:
"That a similar spirit will actuate the rep
resentatives of the American people is not to
be questioned; and I fervently pray that the
Great Ruler of Nations may so guide your de
liberations and our joint measures as that they
may prove salutary examples not only to the
present but to future times, and solemnly pro
claim that the constitution and the laws are
supreme and the UNION INDISSOLUBLE."
Thorpe in a recent volume entitled "The
Statesmanship of Andrew Jackson" (published
;by the Tandy-Thomas company, New York)
quotes Herndon, Lincoln's law partner, as say
ing in his "Life of Lincoln" that Jackson's
proclamation against nullification was one of
the three sources of reference which Lincoln
called for when he prepared his first inaugural
In the war, for the maintenance of the union,
democrats fought side by side with republicans,
and it ought not to be forgotten that Douglas,
' whom Lincoln defeated for the presidency in
-We campaign of I860 was prompt in announc-
ink his support of Lincoln -as soon as -war was
-threatened. The republican leaders have not
done justice to the union democrats, but havo
on the contrary attempted to make political
capital out of the fact that the republican party
was in power and conducted, tile war to a suc
cessful termination.
The republican party has also mado capital
out of the emancipation of slaves, and yet no
reader of history can be Ignorant of the fact
that the freeing of slaves had no part in the
plans of the republican leaders when the war
commenced. It must be remembered also that,
the north profited by the slave trade, and while
the slave trade existed, the defense of slavery
was not confined to the south. Slavery was
defended In New England even down to the'
days of the revolution and after. Not only was
slavery advocated and dofendoawltrhj.iiQrth,
but there were opponents of slavery mthd
south. Thomas Jefferson Was opposed to pl&ycryh
and believed that emancipation must ultimately
dome. Ho spoke upon the subject with such
emphasis and so frequently that his position
can not be doubted. Abraham Lincoln quoted
Jefferson constantly in his speeches. Here wb
have the founder of the republican party quot
ing the language of, and relying upon, the two
greatest democrats of the nation Thomas Jef-'
ferson, the founder of the party, and Andrew
Jacksoii its defender and yet republican lead
ers ignore the services rendered by these demo
crats and by a multitude of democrats who fol
lowed them, and seek to claim entire credit for
the freeing of the slaves and the saving of the
union.
The young men who are leaving our colleges
should not only understand the history of the
past, but they should understand the present
situation. Even if the republican party could
justly claim all the credit for the freeing of
the slaves, and for the maintenance of the union,
its past would not be a sufficient answer to the t
indictment that can be brought against it at
this time. A new slavery is being fastened upon
the people the slavery of privilege and plutoc
racy. Under the system of black slavery the
owner had a pecuniary interest in the welfare
of his slave. Eyen if he had no higher reasons,
he could not afford to allow the slave to suffer
for want of shelter, food, clothing or medical
attention, but under the plutocratic system
which has grown up under republican rule, the
monopolist is getting the benefit of labor with
out responsibility for it or accountability to it.
A slave was a slave because all the proceeds of
his labor were appropriated by his master with
out his consent, but his master appropriated
all; it was not all-profit for he furnished food,
clothing and attention. Under existing condi
tions the producers of wealth are being de
prived of a part, at least, of their earnings, and
when they cry for justice, they are denounced
as disturbers of the peace.
The patriotism which the republican leaders
are manifesting today has been described as the
patriotism of pelf and the college student who
goes forth to do battle for his country must
decide whether he will battle with the preda
tory interests or against them, and If he de
cides to bottle against them he must next de-
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