6
The Commoner
VOLUME 9, NUMBER 31!
The Commoner.
ISSUED WEEKLY.
Bntorcd at tho Postofllco at Lincoln, Nebraska,
ft uccond-claHH matter.
WlMJAM J, UllYAN
Editor mul Proprietor
IlICHAHl) I Mictcai.vis
Associate Editor
GlIAllf.KH W. UllYAN
Publlnhor
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THE COMMONER, Lincoln, Nob.
Now that a flying machine has crossed the
English channel, possibly a dove can.
"What a convenient word that word "revise"
Is! You can just do anything with it.
TJio mon who put that joker in the boot and
flhoo tariff would be ashamed of themselves
if they had any shame but they have not.
"What a crop of contemptible tricks that Aid
rich hill raised! Do tho republican farmers
understand now what a protective tariff means?
How fortunate that Dr. Eliot did not ac
cept the ambassadorship! He might have tried
to force his "new" religion on Great Britain,
and involved us in a war.
The president has been inviting the progres
sive republicans to White Houso dinners in the
A?5e. ?f W,nln them t0 thG support of the
Aldrich bill. He made such a liberal use
SLViVh,,cken leg as an ftr6ment that he is
ln?iy f ac(iused f substituting tho drum
stick for tho big stick.
EQUAL H1GHTS TO ALL
Thomas L. Bulger, tho member who intro
duced in the Alabama house of representatives
tho resolution to adopt the income tax deliver'
R speech in favor of his resolution. Reviewing
tho conditions which have brought about the
necessity for a change he said:
"Under the protection of the republican tariff
laws the rich have grown richer and the poor
poorer, and the consumer must bear the burdens
without hope in the future. The sixteenth
jmendment to tho constitution of the United
States will reaffirm and re-establish tho Jeffer
lonlan doctrine, 'equal rights to all and special
privileges to none.' The rich and poor will con
tribute and receive alike. Contentment, apnl
ness and prosperity will be seen and felt on
oyery hand throughout tho length and breadth
of our great country." "reaatn
THE SUTTON CASE
Lieutenant Sutton of the naval academy at
Annapolis, lost his life while engaged in n
struggle with three fellow ofllcers. The testi
mony discloses that Sutton was shot while these
three men were holding him down. His assail
ants claim that ho committed suicide. His
mother and other relatives believe that he was
murdered, uid it is safe to say that the average
newspaper reader who has followed tho testi
mony is inclined to agree with tho mother.
It seems, however, that tho administration
permitted this caso to be covered up and but
for tho mother's persistence nothing more would
have been heard of it. Forced by the disclosures
to do something the administration has required
the mother ' to assume the rolo of prosecutor
of particular individuals. Tho administration
should take upon itself the thorough investi
gation of this affair. The government should
make the charges.
It is altogether a discreditable affair and tho
authorities should be not only willing but anx
ious to bring out every important fact.
IN NOITH CAROLINA
In The Commoner of June 25, 1909, on
page six, appeared a poem published the first
time in Tho Commoner more than a year ago,
entitled, "In Virginia." I desire to enter a mild
protest to the claims made therein by the author
of these verses, for although Virginia is a
bright, fair and happy land,
"Here's to the land of the long-leaf pine,
The summer land where the sun doth shine,
"Where the weak grow strong and the strong
grow great,
Here's to 'Down Home,' the 'Old North State.' "
The roses elsewhere bloom as white, as In
Virginia,
The sunshine elsewhere shines as bright, as in
Virginia,
The birds sing elsewhere just as sweet, and else
where hearts as lightly beat,
For heaven and earth both seem to meet, "Down
Home" in the "Old North State."
The days are elsewhere quite as long,- as in
Virginia,
And quite as filled with happy song, as In
Virginia,
And when my time has come to die, just take
me back and let me lie,
Close where the Cape Fear goes rolling by,
'.'Down Home" in the "Old North State."
There elsewhere Is a land as fair, as in Virginia,
As full of song, as free of care, as in Virginia,
And I believe that "Beulah Land," the Lord
prepared for mortal man,
Is built exactly on the plan of "Down Home,"
the "Old North State."
ALBERTS. GRADY.
Mount Olive, North Carolina.
Organize Now
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 sentiment to submit an income
tax amendment. It is no secret, however, that
the republican leaders who reluctantly yielded
to this necessity expect that the proposed amend
ment will fail by reason of not' having a suffi
cient number of states.
The clause in the federal constitution provid
ing for the method of amendment is as follows
"The congress, whenever two-thirds of both
houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose
amendments to this constitution or, on the ap
plication of the legislatures of two thirds of
the several states, shall call a convention for
proposing amendments, which "in either case,
shall lie valid to all intents and purposes, as
part ot this constitution, when ratifledv by the
legislatures of three-fourths of the several states
or by conventions of three-fourths thereof as
the one or the other mode of ratification may be
proposed by the congress; provided, that no
amendment which may be made prior to the
year ono thousand eight hundred and eight shall
n any manner affect the first and fourth clauses
In the ninth section of the first article- and
that no state, without its consent, shall be de
prived of its equal suffrage in tho senate."
The fight for the income tax has only begun
Tho subject should, therefore, be studied by
every citizen. It would bo well if, in every pre
cinct in the United States, men and women
should congregate for the purpose of informing
themselves upon this important topic.
TWO CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Election, of senators by popular voto Is more
important than empowering congress to levy an
income tax. The senate has agreed to submit
N
a constitutional 'amendment for the latter pur
pose. It may be forced to submit one for tho
former.
The legislatures of twenty-seven states havo
already, by resolution, favored direct election
of senators. Upon tho demand of thirty-one
states congress is bound to call a constitutional
convention which might submit amendments
not only for income tax and popular election of
senators, but for other things even less wel
come to truly conservative members of the upper
house. It is not Improbable that, if forced to
choose between submitting an amendment for
direct election of senators and calling a consti
tutional convention, the senate would accept the
former,. We hope to see that choice forced
upon it, and would cheerfully see the income
tax matter deferred for that purpose.
We really need an income tax only as an alter
native to tariff exaction, and there is no escape
from tariff exactions until the senate is made
answerable to the public. We hope it will bo
made1 clear before the next congress convenes
that the senate must either submit a constitu
tional amendment for direct election of its mem
bers or call a constitutional convention. Satur
day Evening Post.
AMONG THE STATES
A writer in the New York American says:
If anybody supposes that the state legisla
tures are not wide enough awake to appreciate
the need and significance of the income tax
amendment, a study of the actual doings of tho
legislatures during the current year would un
deceive him.
The fact is that everywhere throughout the
country the law-making power of the several
states has been aggressive in a reform move
ment whose tide is rising high against all kinds
of political corruption and economic wrong.
The income tax will ride on the crest of the
wave as the culmination of a great national
effort to break the power of privilege.
The broad' sweep of the reform movement
is carrying the state legislatures generally to
ward those fundamental ideas of free govern
ment that are most ancient and most modern,
towit, the principle of direct nominations, the
principle of the initiative, the referendum and
the recall, and the principle that money should
cease to be potential in elections.
During the sessions qf their legislatures, re
cently adjourned, five states Michigan, New
Hampshire, Idaho, Nevada and California
adopted a mandatory system of direct nomina
tions, covering practically all offices except that
of. delegate to a national convention.
Thus nearly or quite half the states of the
union havo now embraced the principle of direct
nominations in its thoroughgoing and manda
tory form. While in two-thirds of the remain
ing states the principle is recognized and ap
plied partially or optionally.
In half the states the corrupt nominating con
ventions are altogether abolished, so far as local
and state politics are concerned.
Four state legislatures have this year extend
ed the principle of direct nominations to the
office of United States senator. And twenty
five other legislatures had already done so.
Thus in twenty-nine commonwealths United
States senators are now directly nominated by
the people.
In threo states Oregon, Nevada and Nebras
ka there is what amounts to a direct popular
election to the United States senate.
In four legislatures this year the initiative
and referendum made notable progress.
The Kansas legislature grafted the prin
ciple upon the charter of every city in, the
state.
In six states of the union this principle is in
full operation for statute and municipal -law.
And in fourteen other states it has a more lim
ited application.
In Nevada this year's legislature passed a res
iVKn loking t0, a constitutional amendment
enabling the people summarily to recall' (dis-
officersrm G) any r aU tlleir electd
Concerning the limiting of the use of money
in elections, the legislatures of Oregon dolo
rado and Nebraska made certain notable ad
vances during their latest sessions
qtaTnT116 i lt lS eVident that, the
state legislatures are "up and coming." And
osdepff unt Pn their sloth or fgnorance
to defeat the income tax are like summering
" " i
wiyKirv
