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OCTOBER 22, 190
The Commoner.
A Nebraska Republican Paper's Plain Talk
mo democratic and populist nominees for
justices of the Nebraska supremo court are John
J. Sullivan, James R. Dean and B. F. Good. Tho
Lincoln Star, a republican paper, In its issuo of
October 12 calls upon tlio people of Nebraska
to elect Judges Sullivan, Dean and Good. The
Star's editorial follows:
Throughout the country there is a growing
conviction that our courts and our schools should
be taken out of politics. So strong is this feel
ing that the commendable reform has been ac
complished In nearly every city insofar as tho
schools are concerned. In few places do party
politics and factionalism cut any figure in tho
election of school directors and in the admlnis
tration of school affairs.
This is aa it should be and Is but further
evidence that wo are progressing, moving for
ward rapidly along common sense lines and be
ginning to reach the point In government when
our public affairs will bo handled with a view
of getting tho best results.
Of as great or greater importance is the prob
lem of our judiciary. For Bevoral years tho
most enlightened thought has been for tho
elimination of party politics in the selection of
Court judges. It has come to bo quite gen
erally recognized that, primarily, tho particular
party brand carried by the candidate for a
judgeship has little bearing on tho question of
his qualification for tho office to which he as
pires. It has been further demonstrated that
when partisan lines are drawn In the nomination
and election of judges tho resulting court Is apt
to bo prejudiced honestly or otherwise when
questions affecting the interests of his party
come before him for judication. North, south,
east and west 'We have' beheld the disgusting
spectacle of courts nullifying good laws, enacted
under tho spur of public demand, simply be
cause tho party which put them Into operation
was opposed to tho party of which the deciding
court happened to be a member. In fact, it Is
such outrages that have cause! tho present
widespread demand for a non-partisan or bi
partisan judiciary,
Here in Nebraska thfs year we are confronted
by this Issue Before deciding whom we shall
elect to the three vacancies on our supreme
bench It would be well for us to consider this
non-partisan Idea and to review its history in
Nebraska. It will be recalled that a republi
can legislature in 1907 offered an amendment
to the people increasing the number of supreme
fudges from three to seven. At that time there
was much discussion of the non-partisan theory
as applied to courts and the best evidence in
dicated that the voters of the state desired to
put the system Into operation. A republican
governor pledged himself to give the democrats
an even break when he made tho four additional
appointments, and at the 1908 election all hands
turned out and worked for the amendment, with
the result that it carried by about three to one.
Incidentally, the republican governor was de
feated for re-election, and when it came time
for him to make his four supreme court ap
pointments he named three republicans and one
democrat, the latter for one of the two one-year
terms.
Naturally, democracy felt somewhat grieved,
so, in the next legislature, which happened to
be democratic, a bill was passed creating a non
partisan judiciary. This measure provided for
the nomination and election of judges without
regard to party. It is the most direct evidence
we have concerning the desire of the people of
the state for this judiciary system, and in the
absence of amy otber proof it must be accepted
as the voice of the masses raised In protest
against a continuance of the old party court
plan and In favor of the more enlightened, busi
nesslike metkod.
In short order the non-partisan law was at
tacked by the friends of the republican leaders
and was declared unconstitutional by a republi
can supreme court. The question whether the
law was actually unconstitutional or was in
validated for selfish reasons is one for lawyers,
and not laymen, to determine. However, the
fact remains that the people, through their rep
resentatives in the legislature, expressed a de
sire for r non-partisan court. This furnishes
excellent argument for the election of the three
democratic candidates for supreme judges at
this time, provided they are as well qualified
to perform the duties of office as their repub
lican opponents.
If the state really wants a non-partisan or
bipartisan supreme court, it is in position to get
It this year. Tho supremo court is now com
posed of six republicans nnd one democrat. Tho
latter is a candidate for re-election, so if ho and
the other two democrats aro chosen for tho
offices tho division of tho court will bo four re
publicans to three democrats, still leaving tho
republicans the majority. It sooma but logical
that tho people if thoy aro anxious to have a
court divided between tho two major parties
should vote for tho three democratio nominees,
other things between tho republican and demo
cratic candidates being equal.
Without casting reflection upon tho abilities
of the three republican candidates In any way, It
may bo said that tho democrats who havo been
selected for tho positions are at least tho poors
of the republicans. Thoy aro upright gentlemen
whose abilities aa jurists havo boon tested. Tf
elected to the suprdme court thoy may bo de
pended upon to perform their duties Intolllgant
ly, capably and honestly.
Senator Aldrich
is in the
Saddle
That President Taft has onterod Into an alli
ance, offensive and defensive, with Speaker Can
non and Senator Aldrich; that tho three will
stand and fight together in behalf of a compre
hensive legislative program; that, because of
tho tremendous powers they wield and tho great
interests, political and financial, that aro back
ing them, thoy will bo ablo to rldo down tho
"insurgents" In congress and crush any plot for
tho return of Roosovolt to the presidency
these aro the conclusions reached by tho trained
newspaper men who aro with tho president on
his trip, as well as by others in Washington.
They aro conclusions based not only on close
contact with the president himself, but on bis
public utterances which, for tho past several
weeks, havo all tended strongly to prove a com
munity of interests between tho president and
tho Aldrlch-Cannon clement of his party.
The Washington correspondent of tho Now
York Herald sends. his paper nn interesting dis
patch, In the courso of which ho says:
"The Information from all sections of tho
country Is that President Taft Is accepted every
where as the leader of his party; that ho Is in
entire harmony with tho organization of the
house; that he is working with Senator Aldrich
and the other republican members of tho mone
tary commission for currency reform, and that,
instead of being at daggers drawn with Speaker
Cannon, he has had a full understanding with
him, and that all the elements which passed a
tariff bill despite the opposition of Representa
tive Parsons and other republican insurgents
are prepared to stand together for a successful
session of congress, which begins In December.
The feeling is that the Cannon organiza
tion will hold control of the house, that the
speaker and the president will act together,
and that tho republican party in the saddle will
be just aB able to frustrate tho efforts of the
Insurgents next winter as thoy wore this
summer."
The Chicago Tribune, In order to get at the
facts as nearly as possible, wired two well known
correspondents who are accompanying tho presi
dent on his trip, and who are known to enjoy
his friendship. It asked them for their un
colored and unbiased views of the situation.
Mr. Fowler, of the New York Sun, wiring his
reply at length, said in part:
"Out of it all the one thing that stands con
spicuous is the fact that the president has joined
hands with the Aldrlch-Cannon machine, in tho
belief that through it he will bo ablo to place
on tho statute books the program of legislation
to which he stands committed. Mr Taft's
friends, who are certain Senator Aldrich will
be found behind the president In the proposed
amendment of the Hepburn rate law and other
important bills, point to the senator's stand In
the last session In favor of tho corporation tax
and the Income tax amendment. Whatever may
be the disposition of the insurgents In regard to
the tariff, their hands will be tied in congress so
long as the Aldrlch-Cannon combination is In
power, but the president's supporters are count
ing on the force of the tariff movement in the
middle west being spent beforo the congressional
campaign next fall."
Mr. Dunlap, of the New York World, sent a
report that was practically identical with that
5
of tho Sun correspondent. Wo quote ft para
graph or two:
"Men who proaumo to explain Mr, Taft's posi
tion nay ho hns accomplished wonders with Mr.
, .()!"J,aml t,ml Mr- Aldrich will carry out
fnlthWly and earnestly tho Tart policies. The
tariff is to bo lost In contests over lntcr-tat
commerco legislation, tho revolution In our
monotary system, conservation, and tho Sher
man law amendments. Prosperity is counted on
to help put tho tariff on tho sholf.
"Cummins, LaFollotto, and tho public, are
exported by theso mon to talk a lot and por
haps to Introduce bills for furthor tariff rovlsloa,
but It Ib pointed out that, with tho president
and tho republican machine In congress working
together, the mouths of tho Insurgent will be
shut and their hands tlod. That Is tho present
plan. It does not tako Into consideration the
coming election of a now congress, publicity and
argument, nor tho pooplo generally."
Taft, Aldrich and Cannon. Theso aro tho all
powerfufl triumvirs. Acting togothor thoy are
thought big onough to stlflo tho volco of pro
test, lnsldo congress and outside, and use tho
republican party an a mnchluo to accomplish,
certain dcflnlto ends.
Those ondn havo already boon outlined by the
president himself. Thoy Include a contral bank
of Issue, a shipping subsidy, tho weakening or
tho Interstate commerco commission by scatter
ing its duties and powers, tho pulling of the
teeth of tho Sherman anti-trust law, opposition
to tho Incomo tax except in time of war, and no
furthor tariff legislation during tho present ad
ministration. It Is roported, too, with tho con
sent of Mr WIckersham himself, Hint tho attor
ney general Is now at work on a national In
corporation law, which will doprlvo tho sovoral
states of all control ovor Interstate commorco
corporations, and vest such control exclusively
In tho federal government.
Progressive republicans In Massachusetts think
so llttlo of this triumvirate and this program
that thoy havo entered openly Into nlllanco with
tho democratic party, hoping, by an emphatic
"voto of protest," to show that tho spirit of
RoosoveltlBm has not yet departed from their
party, and that It must bo reckoned with It tu
party Is to succeed. Omaha World-Herald.
It Is truo that there aro reductions in the
now tariff, but the merest tyro In tariff study
should understand that while an Increase in a
tariff rate almost invariably means an increaso
In tho market price of tho article, a reduction
does not necessarily mean a' decrease. This Is
because the Increased tariff Ib asked for the ox
press purpose of raising the price, whllo In the
caso of tho article upon which thero Is a reduc
tion tho old tariff may havo been unnecessarily
high. An article is manufactured to sell, and
If tho price represents the full amount of tho
tariff plus tho price of tho, forolgn-mado article
it may curtail its ubo. Thus trade necessity may
compel a less price, ono that can bo safoly made
because the tariff Is prohibitive and keeps out
foreign competition. To illustrate, If the home
price represents but GO per cent added to the
foreign manufacturer's price and the tariff on
that article is GO per cent, a reduction of 10
per cent will not affect tho price in this coun
try. Trust-mado articles, made under a pro
fa lbitlvetariff, will not bo affected either. Thus,
there Is a reduction of 14 per cent in tho tariff
on typewriters. Tho trust here sells them for
$100, and an average of 20 per cont less abroad.
Cash registers suffered a tariff reduction from
45 to 30 per cent. Tbey are manufactured by
a trust which sells similar machines abroad at
50 per cent less. Is anybodv gullible enough to
believe that under these conditions typewrite
or cash registers will be reduced in price?
A specimen of the false pretense that accom
panies the presentation of the tariff by those
who are responsible for it Is found in the book
of estimates Issued by Mr. Aid rich's committee
In which it brands as luxuries and, therefore,
fit subjects for Increases, certain silk and cot
ton goods. For Instance cotton cloths, costing
only 20 cents a yard are marked as luxuries,
and the common spun silks that shop girls and
modest housewives use are similarly marked
and there are increases on all silks and cotton
cloths, running on the latter from 20 per cent
to 86.68 per cent when the cloth is not mer
cerized and from 33 to 100 per cent where It is
mercerized. C. Q, D.
Practical Tariff Talks 1
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