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The Commoner.
WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR
VOL- 9, NO. 28
Lincoln, Nebraska, July 23, 1909
Whole Number 444
Majority or Minority
A reader of The Commoner asks that an an
swer bo made to an editorial entitled "Functions
of a Representative," which appeared recently
in the Indianapolis News. The News quotes
Mr. Bryan as saying:
"There aro two schools of thought in regard
to the duty of an official; the aristocratic theory
Is that the people elect representatives to think
for them; the democratic theory is, on the con
trary, that the people think for themselves and
elect representatives to give legal expression
to their thoughts and to voice their sentiments."
The News Insists that there Is one other alter
native, namely, "that the people may elect rep
resentatives who will think for themselves."
That Is an evasion of the Issue. The represent
ative acts in a representative capacity; he ex
ercises authority not in his own name, but in
the name of .those who elect him, and when he
assumes to "think for himself," he thinks for
his representatives also, and his thoughts must
either be their thoughts or thoughts different
from theirs. The News contends that "when a
man goes to congress he does not cease to be a ,
sovereign, does not cease to be responsible to his
own mind and conscience." Here again the
News dodges. Doubtless questions may arise
after the election, upon which the representative
will have to act without knowing the will and
wished of his constituents. Here his judgment
and- ccinaclfinyCLinusfcibe trusted, to hold him to
the spirit of his platform, but these, are not the
cases that give the troiible. Platforms aro
adopted covering the important questions, and
these platforms announce the party's position
and the position of the Candidate. When a
representative is elected upon a platform, It Is
fair to assume that the platform not only rep
resents hlB views, but the views of those who
elected him, and is In the nature of a contract
between him and his constituents. They can
not withdraw from the contract because they
have already acted and vested their authority
In him; that he has no right to change the con
tract would seem like a self-evident truth. But
what do we find? Representatives, yielding to
influences adverse to the interests of their peo
ple, set up their "right of independence of judg
ment and conscience" as an excuse for not carry
ing out their contract with their constituents.
This is misrepresentation it Is more, it is em
bezzlement of power.
The News says '''this whole attempt to convert
the government into a machine managed by
automata pulled by strings from their districts
Is bound to fall as it cught to 'fall." The
CONTENTS
MAJORITY OR MINORITY
ORGANIZE FOR THE INCOME TAX
EDUCATIONAL SERIES THE INCOME
TAX
'DEMOCRATIC PATRIOTISM
MR.- TAFT AND ELECTION OF SENATORS
MR. BRYAN'S OFFER TO MR. TAFT
"EVERYBODY WORKS POOR FATHER".
THE TARIFF BEFORE, CONGRESS' '
WILL THE VOTERS FORGET?
THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT
SEATTLE EXPOSITION
MR. TAFT AND THE TARIFF
WHY NOT TRY THE RIGHT WAY? K
. LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE
HOME DEPARTMENT
WHETHER COMMON OR NOT
NEWS OF THE WEEK
difficulty is not that the representatives are
"pulled by strings from their districts" the
trouble is that they are pulled by other strings,
sometimes they allow interests entirely outside
their district to pull them away, from their duty
to their districts sometimes they allow a few
favored interests in their "istricts to pull them
away from their duty to the rest of the people
In their districts.
The News then proceeds to discuss the duty of
a representative to his district in matters of
tariff legislation and says:
"In many districts the democrats aro strong
for protection where their local industries aro
concerned as are the republicans. Suppose,
then, democrats and republicans alike should
demand that their representatives vote for high
protection on local products. Should the repre
sentative do their bidding? Is it his duty to
think for his people, or to adopt their views
which are the result of their thinking for them
selves?" This question Is settled by the platform, or
ought to bo. If a man's platform demands a
protective tariff, he ought to vote for a protec
tive tariff. If his platform demands a reduction
of the tariff, he ought jto vote for a reduction.
If his platform demands a "revision" of the
tariff and he, in his speeches before his con
stituents, construed revision to mean reduction,
ho has a right to assume that his people want
reduction. A man will have no difficulty In
applying the democratic theory if he is at heart
a democrat. If he is at heart an aristocrat and
denies that he is under any obligation to give
voice to the wishes of his people, he ought to
say so during the campaign so that ho can be
left at home, for tho voters are not likely to
electa a man who annos;tkfclwrwUl- not
consider their wishes Tvhen he is called upon
to act for them. As a matter of fact, the aristo
cratic view is not, as a rule, adopted because
the representative believes in aristocracy, but
because he is In search of an excuse for refus
ing to perform what he knows to be his duty
to his constituents. .
But the Indianapolis News quotes the follow
ing with approval from the Charleston (N. C.)
News and Courier:
"Mr. Bryan's theory is that a public official
should be the people's puppet, that when he ac
cepts office he effaces himself as a free agent
and that he reserves to himself only the func
tion of what he conceives to be the people's
will."
The Indianapolis editor ought to know that
the Charleston News and Courier is not an ex
ponent of democratic ideas. It calls itself dem
ocratic without being democratic, just as some
. legislators call themselves representatives when
' they are mlsrepresentatlves. The democratic
Idea of representative government does not
mean that the representative shall efface him
self; It means that he shall keep faith with
those from whom ho derives power; but if the
representative has to choose between effacing
himself and effacing his constituents, he had
better efface himself, for it is more important
that his constituents shall have proper repre
sentation than that he shall gratify himself by
doing for them what they do not want done, or
by doing in their name that against which they
protest. While he acts for himself he can act
as he pleases, but when Tie becomes a repre
sentative he acts not as an individual, but as
a spokesman for a large number of individuals,
each one as important as himself and each one
having a conscience, an opinion and rights that
must be respected.
There are but two Wnds of government, gov
ernment by the majority and government by the
minority. Millions of lives have been expend
ed in the purchase of popular government and
- they have been expended In vain if those elect
ed by tho people can disregard the wishes of
those who elected them.
ORGANIZE FOR THE INCOME TAX
Unquestionably a majority of the democratic
and republican parties 'favor the income tax.
If proof on this point were necessary it is
found in the fact that a republican congress
has been forced by public senttmont to submit
an lncomo tax amendmont. It is no secret,
however, that tho republican leadors who re
luctantly yiolded to this necessity expect that
tho proposed amendment will fall by reason
of not having a sufficient number of states.
Tho clauso In tho federal constitution pro
viding for the method of amendment is as
follows:
"Tho congress, whonovor two-thlrda of both
houses shall doom It noccssary, shall propose
amendments to this constitution or, on tho ap
plication of tho legislatures of two-thirds of the
several states, shall call a convention for pro
posing amendments, which In either case, shall
bo valid to all Intents and purposes, as part of
this constitution, when ratified by tho legisla
tures of three-fourths of tho several states, or .
by conventions of three-fourths thereof, as the
one or the other modo of ratification may be
proposed by tho congress; provided, that no
amendment which may bo mado prior to the
year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall
in any manner affect tho first and fourth clauses
in the ninth section of tho first article; and
that no state, without Its consent, shall bo de
prived of Its equal suffrage In tho senate"
Tho Washington correspondent for tho Chi-
cago Rocord-IIerald recently said:
"Senators and other students of politics and
economics at the national capital have been giv
ing attention to the field of campaign that soon
will be opened and it must be confessed that
the most enthusiastic advocates of an income ,
tax aro not intoxicated by hopo. Getting down if
to cold figures thoy can not at this time see
a safe majority for tho adoption of tho amend-
ment that only awaits formal actlonyths
house of representatives ,to""coine befortftlfe
state legislatures. To soquro ratification lj$f'
amendment must carry thirty-flvo states. Twelve l
states rejecting it will kill it. By not acting
either affirmatively or negatively a few states
may prevent the necessary three-fourths ma
jority." It will bo seen, therefore, that the fight for
tho Income tax has only begun. Tho subject
should, therefore, be studied by every citizen.
It would be well if, in every precinct In the
United States, men and women should con-
gregate for tho purpose of Informing themselves
upon this important topic.
The Springfield (Mass.) Republican gives a
timely hint when it says:
"In providing that the sixteenth amendment
to the federal constitution shall be submitted
to tho legislatures of tho states, rather than to
state conventions receiving their mandate di
rectly from the people, the senate resolution
makes it possible not merely for twolve legisla
tures to defe.it tho amendment; but for tho
halves of twelvo legislatures to defeat it. This
Is a point that has not been sufficiently empha
sized. Every American legislature has two
branches, co-ordinate in action and equal in
power. Each branch may exercise a veto upon
the other. To defeat tho income tax amend
ment consequently in any state it will be neces
sary only to defeat it in the upper chamber,
which is usually the more conservative body
and the more responsive to the desires and in
terests of wealth.
"This consideration gives fresh precision to
tho problem of securing ratification by the neces
sary number of states. It is manifest that a
bicameral legislature, in which a small minority
pf the total membership of both branches could
: prevent affirmative action simply by controlling
' a small-sized senate, presents difficulties that
, would wholly disappear if the question were
submitted to a state convention. Connecticut
has a small senate thirty-five members; Rhode
'island's senate has thirty-eight members; New
'Hampshire's has but twenty-four. Thirteen men
' in 'New Hampshire can defeat the Income tax
W. amendment, twenty in Rhode Island and elgh
l W in Connecticut. And by what influences
l havevthese bodies usually been dominated in the
i !past? It is not difficult to count up nine other
,K legislatures whose senates might easily decline
to take affirmative action."
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