The Commoner.
WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR
VOU 11, NO. 46
Lincoln, Nebraska, November 24, 1911
Witofo Number $66
It's Up to You, Mr. President
Well, it is up to you now, Mr. President You have been chsJU
lenging Mr. Bryan to name a case that can not be prosecuted just
as well under the new construction as under the anti-trust law u
formerly construed. Mr. Bryan has named five cases, the Standard
Oil Case, the Tobacco case, the Steel Trust case, the Traffic case and
the Merger case. You would not 'discuss these but we now have a
case which YOU MUST ACT UPON. The packers asked for ft
writ of habeas corpus on the ground that a law which prohibits
ONLY UNREASONABLE RESTRAINT of trade can not be enforced
criminally because no one can tell what a court or jury would de
clare to be unreasonable. The packers say:
"The alleged criminality of the alleged transactions complained
of in the indictments will depend entirely upon a particular jury's
view of the REASONABLENESS or UNREASONABLENESS of the
particular case; it will depend not on any standard erected by th
law which may be known in advance, but on one that may be created
by the whim, prejudice or arbitrary views of a jury.
"There is no set standard fixed or attempted to be fixed to
guide tlit citizen to a. knowledge of his guilt or innocence of aa
offense charged before it has been adjudicated.
"The act violates the sixth amendment to the constitution of Um
United States, which requires that petitioners severally shall be in
formed of the nature and cause of the accusations.1'
The supremo court has already held substantially as the packers
claim and Justice Harlan and the judiciary committee of the senate
took the same position in opposing the insertion of the word
UNREASONABLE in the law. You have contended, Mr. President,
that the law was IMPROVED by the insertion of the word UN
REASONABLE; now that the matter will soonor or later get before
the supreme court on this point we shall see what the law is worth
as a criminal statute. The only trouble is that the final decision may
not be rendered until after the next election. Can you hurry this
case up and get a decision at once? Push the prosecution and let us
know whether a man can be punished for doing an unreasonable
thing with criminal intent when there is no definition of unreasonableness.
A Leader Wanted
There is a progressive majority in congress, but
it lacks leadership. Speaker Clark is the one
of whom leadership was expected but his use
fulness in that capacity is being impaired,
partly by fear that he will be accused of imitat
ing Cannon, and partly by the mistaken idea
that it is his special mission to preserve harmony
among the democrats in the house. In both
cases he errs. Cannon was not a moral leader
he was the master of a machine. The appoint
ment of committees enabled him to coerce re
publicans and corrupt democrats. When the
democrats changed the rules they did not Intend
to deprive the speaker of any power that legiti
mately belongs to a democratic leader. On tho
contrary, a democratic leader ought to be the
stronger because his leadership rests upon his
ability to persuade rather than upon fear.
The second error into which Speaker Clark has
fallen is still more dangerous. The first error
tends to make him a negative quantity but the
second may convert him into a positive force for
harm. If he conceives his highest duty to be
to preserve harmony he will exert his Influence
to prevent the consideration of any measure
upon which democrats are divided the trust
question, for instance. Progress Is more Im
portant than harmony. The men who oppose
CONTENTS
A LEADER WANTED
APPEAL TO PREJUDICE
WALL STREET NOT AFRAID
THANKSGIVING POEM BY WILL
MAUPIN
A BIG MAN WATCH HIM
REPRESENTATIVE HENRY WILL SEEK
TO AMEND THE ANTI-TRUST LAW
FEDERAL ATTORNEY WISE ARRAIGNS
FEDERAL COURTS
MR. BRYAN'S SOLUTION
THIRD INSTALLMENT OF GEORGE
FRED WILLIAMS' BRIEF
PERKINS' NATIONAL INCORPORA
TION PLAN
'PRACTICAL TARIFF TALKS
. . ' HOME DEPARTMENT
WHETHER COMMON OR NOT
NEWS OF THE WEEK
reforms are always quick to threaten a bolt
if remedial legislation is attempted.
The democniiJArtTls. progresslxajjaEty '
nino-tonths of, tb,er rank, and. ill are .progressive,,
but ho ohe-tehth is powerful because it la made
up of men with largo corporate connections and
of politicians whom they intimidate.
The progressive element In the party must
have leadership in tho house. If, for any reason,
tho speaker refuses to lead, some one should
be selected to marshal the reform forces and
lead the fight. Mr. Underwood has gained undue
prominence because he has been allowed to
speak for the democratic majority. Ho haB led
the party Into surrenders which embarrass It;
he is' tho head of the reactionary element of the
party the man whom the progressive leaders
will have to oppose.
Who will lead? Mr. Clark is, so far as is
known, right on all public questions. Will he
step forward and order a charge? Or will he
act aB umpire and watch the fight. He won his
spurs as a fighter and he can not hope to re
tain the confidence of his friends If he turns the
leadership over to another.
If Mr- Clark had exhibited as speaker the quali
ties of leadership that made him speaker he
would now be without a rival In the race for
the presidential nomination. He has time yet
to make himself a formidable candidate, but to
do so he must LEAD.
There are several planks of the democratic
platform which have not -yet been taken up;
are they going to be carried out or repudiated?
We have fought for nineteen years for the elec
tion of senators by the people Is it to be killed
In conference?
The people need a champion In the house
to whom will the honor go?
Is Judge Land Is being considered for Justice
HaTlan's place? Or has he, by his fine against
the Standard Oil company, shut himself of the
distinguished company of those fitted by judicial
temperament for the supreme bench?
Mr. Perkins told us why Governor Hughes
was "put over." Now will he tell us whom his
former partner, J. Pierpont Morgan, has recom
mended for Justice Harlan's place?
Do you hear of any one being discussed for
Justice Harlan's place who resembles him in
any respect?
If big business will name their ckotea for Justice
Harlan's place the public cam quit messing.
Appeal to Prejudice
The Irish World to scolding Mr. Bryan again.
Under a heading, "Duped Again," it has an
editorial of a column and a half complaining
that Mr. Bryan has fallen a victim to English
wiles. It charges that Mr. Bryan was deceived
"by his English entertainers" and returned from
Great Britain "enthusiastic for a pro-British
treaty," etc. The World Is wrong again. The
Idea of investigation before war was carried to
Great Britain by Mr. Bryan over five years ago.
Ho first urged the plan upon President Roose
velt, pointing out that Investigation would In
almost every case prevent war by leading to
reconciliation. Whon ho visited Asia In the fall
of 1905 ho presented the plan at a banquet given
him at Toklo. When he roached London in July
of 1906 he laid the plan before Sir Henry
Campbell-Bannerman and secured his support
for it, and was then successful in obtaining a
unanimous indorsement by the peace congress
during tho same month. Twenty-six nations
were represented at this congress, and there was
not a dissenting vote. He afterwards secured
an indorsement for tho plan by a peace congress
at New York and later at Edinburgh, Scotland.
Instead of being "misled by English entertain
ers" ho has been an ardent advocate of the plan
here and abroad. He brought it to the atten
tion of the president a' year ago last July, and
again last April, and Is very much gratified to
see the plan embodied in the treaty. He has
no apologies to offer to the World or to any
other paper or individual for being In favor of
the promotion of peace. He believes that no
difference between nations is important enough
to justify shooting before the facts are ascer
tained, and he believes that investigation will
in almost all cases make arbitration unneces
sary. If the Irish World Is opposed to Mr.
Bryan's plan it ought to attack the plan and not
attempt to create prejudice against it by mis
representation. The World, not content with the criticism of
Mr. Bryan's advocacy of investigation as. a
means of preserving peace, revamps ita criti
cism pf his defense of. the treaty with Spain. Mr.
Brjtan. has never seen, any reason to change his
mjjd Ion 'that treaty. The country was at war
and jthere1 was no reason fof prolonging the war
'with! its expense and dangers when the same
end could be reached by this nation without the
concurrence of any other nation. No one, not
even the Irish World, has yet attempted to
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