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The Commoner.
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VOIiUMB 10. NUMBER 48
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for a few minutes and chatted with Mr. Bryan.
Both Will Irwin and his father (the latter died
recently), though of opposite politics from the
commoner, held him in the greatest esteem per
sonally. The news that Mr. Bryan was to pass along
the road seemed to have reached every vlllago
and farm house, for there were many people
out to seo him, and tho attention they paid
him Mr. Bryan appeared to appreciate greatly.
which tho pcoplo .aro thinking In this campaign. tinction. It runs through society: it runs through
Let mo tako up what ho says about tho quali- political economy. We havo our democratic teach-
MK. BRYAN'S INDIANAPOLIS SPEECH
Mr. Bryan's speech at Indianapolis on the
evening of October 19 was as follows:
Mr. Chairman, Ladles and Gcntlomcn: I am glad
to participate in this campaign. I have como
nmong you In every presidential campaign for
fourteen years, and during your congressional
campaigns, and I novcr came moro gladly when
I was a candidate for your suffrage than I como
this year. I was not more deeply interested In
tho result of your election in 1890, In 1900 and
in 1908 than I am In tho result of your election
this year. I am hero primarily to contribute, If
I can, to tho election of John W. Kern to tho
senate. What I say upon national issues, how
ever, will apply also to your congressional elec
tion and I am anxious that we shall have a demo
cratic congress which will elect Champ Clark
speaker and Inaugurate an era of reform. Wo
recognizo that It Is hardly possible for us to
chango tho political complexion of tho senato at
this election, but If wo can get a democratic con-
frress we can not only send remedial measures
o tho senate, but we can begin tho Investigation
of what has been going on during tho last four
teen years, and I have no doubt that tho result
of that Investigation will greatly aid us In pre
senting, tho Issues moro clearly in tho next presi
dential campaign. '
NO TARIFF TALK DY ROOSEVELT
I had lntonded on this occasion to devote tho
principal part of the tlmo to answorlng the speech
that Ex-Prcsldent Roosevelt made here last week,
but I did not have a chance to read the speech
until today, and when I read it I found that It
would tako but a short tlmo to answer It, and
that I could glvo my time to tho discussion of
tho Issues which he did not deem it worth whilo
to discuss. I will, in the beginning, run over very
briefly tho nolntB that he made or attempted to
make, in his speech. In tho first place 1 found
that ho did not discuss the tariff question, and I
am surprised that ho could havo overlooked tho
question that Mr. Bevcrldgo has made paramount
In this campaign. I am not suro whether It Is
becauso Mr. Beverldgo did not get to seo him be
foro ho spoke, or whether he did not pay any
attention to what Mr. Beveridge said to him.
At any rate, It is a very significant fact that ho
did not discuss the tariff question or state his
position upon it. Ho mentioned tho commission
here, at another place ho said ho believed tho
protectlvo principle ought to bo maintained.
Ho discussed tho qualities necessary in a publio
servant, and I shall do llkewlso In a few
moments. Ho discussed money making, but If ho
had read tho democratic platform of two years
ago ho could havo discussed tho question moro
intelligently, for our platform of 1908 set forth
the basis for honest accumulations, when it in
sisted that adman's reward from society should
bo commensurate with his contribution to the wel
faro of society, and that it should bo tho aim of
government to bring human laws, as far as pos
sible, Into harmony with tho divine law of rewards.
Nothing that ho said on the subject of money
making here was as fundamental or as far reach
ing as the platform of two years ago on which"
John Kern ran for tho vlco presidency.
Mr. Roosevelt spoko of fighting the crooks in
politics and I shall refer to that at tho appropriate
place in my speech. Ho mentioned the commis
sion, and that I shall deal with in tho discussion
of tno tariff. Ho praised Mr. Beverldgo for what
lie has done toward preventing child labor, but I
think that when Mr. Beveridge has been trying
lor somo three years to get a bill through a sen
ate overwhelmingly republican and a Iioubc with
large republican majority and has made no
more progress than ho has, Mr. Roosevelt must
attribute it to a lack of energy on Mr. Bevcrldge's
part or a lack of sympathy on tho part of tho
rest of tho republican party. Ho speaks of con
servation. Tho republicans are no moro in favor
of conservation of the nation's resources than tho
democrats. If there Is any difference at all, it is
on tho method by which these resources shall bo
conserved, and I am suro that when any dcfinlto
proposition is presented ho will find the demo
crats as anxious as any republican, even Mr. Beve
rldgo, to conserve theso resources, and certainly
lie could not accuso tho democrats of having been
guilty of tho waste that has made this matter a
subject of interest at this time. He speaks of tho
Suro food law, and gives Mr. Beverldgo credit for
avlng assisted in that. I would not dotract from
tho credit that Senator Beverldgo deserves. I am
In favor of tho pure food laws, but If they will
apply tho doctrine of the puro food law to political
systems and recommendations and will label
poisonous all tho poisonous doctrines that are put
forth In tho name of new nationalism they will
soon bo out of business. Ho speaks of freight reg
ulation; and that I shall discuss when I discuss
tho railroad question. Ho speaks of ovcr-capltall-zatlon.
Tho democrats go farther than the repub
licans on the subject of ovor-capltallzation, and
they can easily do so because they haven't tho
stocks and tho londB in their pockets that repro-
sent the over-capitalization of which Mr. Rooso
velt complains.
And this ovor-capltallzatlon Is duo to the fact
that tho republican party, In office during tho last
fourteen years, has permitted tho wildest sort of
- speculation and tho exploitation of tho public
without limits.
aUALIFIOATIONS FOR PUBLIC SERVICE
I have now gone over tho things that I found
. -In his speech, and I think you will agree with
.: mo that ho has succeeded In making an Interest
ing speech without discussing tho questions about
flcations for nubile service. He says that a man
riimii.i tinvn iirnitin that ho, should bo honest and
that ho should be courageous. I agree with him
that all theso qualities are necessary. A man
must have brain. But we aro less apt to make a
mistake on that subject than on most any other,
for the average of Intelligence is so high In this
country that a man is not apt to be nominated
for an important ofllce unless ho has tho intel
lectual qualifications. Mental defects are so easily
observed that a fool can not fool us very easily.
So while It Is necessary that a man shall havo
sense and Intelligence, I am sure that we arc not
apt to get many men Into public place who haven t
the necessary intelligence. Honesty is also a do-
slrable, aye. a necessary thing: but It Is not tho
only thing that is necessary. A man can bo hon
estly wrong as well as honestly right. A man
can bo honestly an aristocrat as well as honestly
a democrat.
In tho old world you can find men as honestly
sunporting a king, as they, in this country, sup
port a president. You will find that a man may
honestly think that God has appointed him to
take caro of tho people, whether they want him
to or not, and to punish them if they object to his
doing so. But more people honestly believo in this
country that it' Iel better to let each man bo tho
guardian of himself and take care of his own in
terests, as far as ho can. Wo believo in honesty,
and wo believo in it as sincerely and as firmly
as Mr. Roosevelt does. Wo believe in moral cour
age, too, and I hardly think that tho importanco
of this particular quality can bo over estimated.
Moral courage is much more rare than physical
courage. A man who will fight on tho street .
corner at tho drop of a hat and imperil his physi
cal existence, may be a coward when It comes to
questions where moral courage Is required. I be
lieve, with Mr. Roosevelt, that moral courago is
very necessary. Temptations surrounding men at
the capital aro great; one of the most pathetic
things that wo have to observe and regret in public
life is the fall,' in tho presence of temptations, of
men whom the people havo trusted: and the farther
you send a man away from home, the more im
portant it Is that ho shall have the courage to
resist temptation, for as he goes farther away
from home tho restraint of lus neighbors upon
him, Is weakened, and tho temptations Increase
In size Yes, moral courago Is a very Important
thing.
INFLUENCES CHANGE DISPOSITIONS
I was in a sleeping car one evening and I heard
two men talking, one of whom was a physician.
Tho physician was explaining a theory that he had.
Ho said it had. been demonstrated that you could
chango a man's disposition by diet; that by tho
proper selection of food you could actually chango
his disposition. I might have told him that it was
no new theory, that the women had been using
it with success on their husbands for thousands
of yeax-fi. What husband can not testify from his
own experiences, to tho success of the theory?
I have had somo experience. I left home last Tues
day week at a very early hour and, living four
miles in tho country, It was necessary for me to
leavo homo before breakfast time. My wife in
sisted on my getting breakfast before I left, and
she arose some tlmo before tho usual hour, and
prepared tho breakfast herself, that we might
eat together. Tho day before she had taken tho
alns to get the things that she knew I liked she
lad hominy this big grained hominy, and milk
gravy and sausago; arid maybe you think I didn't
feel the effects on my disposition for several days.
But instead of telling him it was an old theory
I asked him if ho would like confirmation of It,
and ho said that ho would. I told him that when
I was in congress I had known men to come to
Washington with an honest disposition to faith
fully represent their constituents, but that under
the influence of a diet of champagne and terrapin,
their disposition had been so entirely changed that
they would sell their constituents to tho highest
bidder.
Yes, it requires moral courago to meet tho
temptations of tho national capital. But, my
friends, thero is ono quality that Mr. Roosovelt
did not mention, and it is a very tmportant qual
ity, namely, that tho representative should bo
in sympathy with tho whole people, and not with
a part of tho people. Ho overlooked that quality,
which is so important that I can not understand
how ho could havo forgotten it. There is ono
great struggle in this country today and it is
not confined to this country; It pervades every
country on earth. Nor is it confined to this time:
it has existed from tho beginning of history. It
is the struggle between the few on the ono side,
who want privileges and favors, and the many
on tho other side, who demand that their rights
shall bo protected, It Is tho struggle between
aristocracy and democracy. It is tho worId-wlde,
never ending struggle between tho masses and
thoso who oppress them. It makes a great deal of
difference whether a man takes an aristocratic
view of society, or a democratic view. Tho demo
crat believes that society Is built from the bottom.
Tho aristocrat believes that society Is suspended
from the top. Tho democrat says "legislate for
tho whole people and their prosperity will find
its way up through tho classes that rest upon
tho masses:" but the aristocrat says, "legislate
for the well-to-do, and their prosperity will leak
through on those below." That Is the difference.
DEMOCRATS AND ARISTOCRATS
You can not llnd out whether a man Is a demo
crat or an aristocrat, by asking him. for he will
never admit that ho is an aristocrat. When I
want to find whether a man Is a democrat or an
aristocrat, I tako him off to one sldo and I tell
lilm the Bible story of Lazarus and Dives how
luxzarus ato tho crumbs that fell from DIvcb'
tuble. Then I listen to see what he says. If bo
Is a democrat ho says: "It Is too bad that wo
havo peoplo who livo on crumbs. Can't we get
together and plan somo relief? Can't wo inaugu
rate somo reform that will so Incrcaso tho num
ber of tables, that every man can havo a tablo
of his own; so that nobody will have to live upon
tho crumbs that fall from another man's table?"
That Is what ho says If he is a democrat. But
what does he say if ho Is an aristocrat? . Ho says:
"What a lucky thing It was for Lazarus that thero
was a Dives near." That is tho fundamental dis-
ers of political economy and our aristocratic teach
ers of political economy. If vuu rjiv tn tin
men that thero Is not food enough; that somo
of tho peoplo aro hungry, the democratic econo
mist will attempt to Increase tho fertility of tho
soil; ho will attempt to incrcaso tne production
per acre, he will try to enlarge the supply of
food, so that all can have enough. But what
does the aristocratic economist do? Ho says: "it
seems to me that I remember that when I was
young, if I ato a persimmon that was a llttlo
green, it puckered my mouth. Now, wouldn't it
bo possible to make an extract from persimmons
and draw up tno stomach to fit tho food, so that
thero would bo no hunger?"
POUR QUALIFICATIONS FOR. OFFICE
A great deal depends upon tho heart. It is
necossary that' a man's heart shall bo right. When
I was a young man I heard a sermon from tno
text, "As ho tmnketh in his heart, so Is he." And
that has grown upon mo over since. Out of tno
heart aro tho issues of life. Let mo know what
a man's heart wants and I will guess "what reason
ho will give for wanting It. It is a poor head
that can not find an excuso for doing what tno
heart wants to do. How could Mr. Roosevelt havo
overlooked this important qualification, that tho
heart should bo right, that it should bo in sym
pathy with struggling humanity, and not with
tho favor-seeking and privileged few?
I name, therefore, four qualifications instead of
three: That a man shall have sense enough to
Jcnow what to do, honesty enough to be faithful
to his promises, that he shall havo moral courage
to resist temptation, and that his heart shall no
right. And I como to this state to champion tho
causo of a man who measures up to ev,cry one of
these requirements. John Kern has all tho sense
that a man needs, to be In tho senate; if he had
more than ho has ho would feel lonesome down
there. And John Kern is Honest; he will be true
to every promiso. You can trust him. When ho
lives up to tho requirements of his own self
respect ho will command your respect. And then
ho has tho courage. I am not afraid that he will
bo corrupted. Why, if ho .could have been cor
rupted he would havo been a republican long ago.
And, my friends, his heart Is right. His heart
is in sympathy with the people; ho shares their
aspirations, ho understands their wants, he is ono
of them.
Let me toll you how much I think of John Kern;
and I will tell you in just a word. I know a
great many public men in the United States, re
publicans and democrats; I know them In every
state in this union, and I can not better express
myself as to the qualifications of John Kern for
tho United States senate, than to say that among
all tho men whom I know, there is not one I had
rather see in tho United States senate; there is
not one who, in my Judgment, is moro fit to bo
there, not ono who would discharge tho duties of
that office lth moro credit to himself and to his
people. , . ', . i
Now, my friends, let mo proceed with tho speech
that I had intended to make here before answering
Mr. Roosevelt's speech. I am through with his
speech, except as I shall refer to It Incidentally.
MUST ELECT LEGISLATURE
I dasiro to present three thoughts for your con
sideration. The first is that in order to elect a
democratic senator, you must elect a democratic
legislature. I believe In tho election of senators
by direct vote of tho people. I have favored that
reform for twenty years. I believo in it for many
reasons. Ono is that it gives the people better
control of their go-vernment, and enables them to
select tho men they want for the senato, and to
robuko them if they betray their trust. That s
one reason. I might give many others; there Is
one other that I beg to bring to your considera
tion at this time. That is that when we elect
senators by direct vote, wo can then elect legis
latures without taking national questions Into con
sideration. That will bo one advantago of elect
ing senators by the vote of the people. We can
then elect a senator as .wo elect a congressman
now, and we can elect our legislatures with a
view to tho state and local questions with which
they have to deal. At present wo must elect a
senator through tho legislature, and thus we elect
a senator when wo elect a legislature. If J'01
want John Kern elected to tho senate, you must
elect a democratic legislature. If you want to
elect Mr. Beveridge to the senato you must elect
a republican legislature. If anybody suggests
that a democratic legislature may not elect Mr.
Kern, or that a republican legislature may not
olect Mr. Beveridge, I shall not attempt to speaic
for tho republican legislature, for I am not suin
ciently acquainted with the republican methods in
your state, but I am willing to sneak for tnu
democratic legislature and say that with Goyern0,
Marshall as chief executive, I am not afraid out
what your legislature will keep the pledge of tno
democratic platform.
LOCAL AND NATIONAL ISSUES
Now when you elect a legislature you must con
sider what tho legislators will do on tho senatorial
question, as well as what they will do on locni
questions, and if you find thero is a conflict r
tween their opinions on local questions and you
opinion as to what ought to be done on national
niliotlnnll irnil ttrlll linoA sx .Ul1n tn nrlllfMl Oil'""'
UKt.lu.., JTWM ...J UIMIi HJ. UUWIUU W ""--" .'I,
tions you will give tho position of paramount Ini
portance. I havo no power to control your 0i,,ut
ions, and would not exercise it if I had, bin
tako tho liberty of giving you my opinion. "
the reasons which support it. If I weie
Indiana I would do hero as I expect to a to
Nebraska, or as I would do In any other l;yQ
in the union I would give national Questions f
position of paramount importanco in tho seieciiu
of a legislature. And I would do so for u -
reasons, which I will present to you. in tuc.iri,iie
Place, you elect a senator for six years, w""
you elect a member of tho legislature coi t
years, and a state senator for four y.ears,m i.
would tako longer, therefore, to correct a ""D
tako mado in tho election of a senator, tnan
mistake made In the election of a Ieglslatoi, , oi
a stato senator. Secondly, a senator deals wiyi
questions that affect tho welfare of ninety "J"
lions of people, while members of tho stato fcy'
laturo deal with questions that affoct at most, xn
Xfte--
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