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The Commoner.
ISSUED WEEKLY
Entered at tho Postofllco at Lincoln, Nobraska,
an Hceoiul-cliiHH matter.
WlM.IAM J. Hit VAN
Ktlllor nntl Proprietor
HlUHAim L. Miicam'K
AmouIuUi Kdltor
ClIAIlf.CH W. UllYAM
I'ulillHlior
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DEMOCRATIC DATICS
Democratic primaries or conventions will bo
hold as follows:
March 14 Kansas democratic state conven
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April 2 Primaries for Wisconsin.
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April 12 Now York democratic stato con
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con-
to make thorn worse In the belief that out of
t good would conio because the people would
bo waked up. u
"I believe that philosophy is unsound. I
have never been willing to participate in mak
ing any condition worse, however sure I might
be that good would como out of it. If I ever
get it into my head that I can raise a man from
2S SVmrS !t on a doad man- ' ss
"I believe this illustrates exactly what we
have to meet in the political world. I believe
it is the part of wisdom therefore that thole
who agree as to tho desirability of a certain ? re
form should join together and get it now on
SLTf? that n,g00d UlIns cured today wm
tomorrow SeUrIng f 8me thor good
wJ c.0.uBftttulato you, therefore, on havimr
been able to co-operate in this state, and from
Iiat ,haV(? heard you hav already socur Jd
KSLtWnf 5 y c-Pratin that neither of your
forces could have secured alone. y
I thlSkttIn wme that l bavo t0 8PQak to you
lining i can best servo you and reward vm,
tho honor you do mo by saying to you a word
LeHn?liragGment' and oncouraiomon ; ta aS
needed by reformers. Great reforms come s W
ly. It is not strange that people should h SX
couraged. The groat reformed of his to ha
TnntnUrs J Badness and discouraglment
Tonight we gather here-democrat nJ i
grossivo republicans I takTit Tor i?n?5 Pw
you are all progressive TOWblicMBf vm, at
progressive at all. My symnathJ L,y0lJ aro
the side of tho progrLsepJb IcSftl??
The stand-patter is a verv innoaiIr P0lItIcs.
world is moving and theTe l Z man ll10
Brave where a stanTpatt r ft
doesMynoctrl sss.of f ssssrif ho
Have asked m0 if WJ2 PSSi
The Commoner .
Knirt that he was not and I have explained his
position somewhat as Peter Cartwright ex
Scd. Some one asked him if he was santi
flod l.IIe said 'In spots.' I feel that Roosevelt
is democratic In spots.
Mr Bryan then devoted several minutes to
a discussion of progress in the world. He di
vided present day progress Into three kinds
moral, intellectual and civic or economic. Ho
illustrated intellectual progress by referring to
the greater number of schools and the decrease
of illiteracy. Tie said, "It is not strange as the
people grow in intelligence that they understand
better the science of government. As they
understand it better they have a higher appre
ciation and a larger faith in the principles of
popular government."
Mr. Bryan then dwelt at some length upon
the progress in popular government In foreign
nations in the past six years. He cited the
examples of Russia, which secured a douma, of
Persia which secured a constitution, of Turkey
which also secured a constitution, and of China
which has thrown off the yoke of monarchy and
has become a republic. He called attention to
Great. Britain and the struggle between the
house of commons and the house of lords,
wherein tho latter made peace with the rising
tide of democracy.
Tho speaker then took up the discussion of
reform legislation in the United States. He
touched upon the history of the movement for
direct election of senators by tho people. He
defended tho direct primary as the foundation
principle of representative government. He
eulogized the national corrupt practices act and
the requirement that political parties give pub
licity to their campaign contributions. He ad
vocated tho income tax, the initiative and
referendum and tho recall. He cited Woodrow
Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt as recent con
verts of tho initiative and referendum and stated
that when it was first advocated before tho Ne
braska convention some fifteen years ago, the
republican papers said that one delegate asked
another what it meant. The second delegate
replied that it was a new kind of democratic
whisky. The paper asserted that it was there
fore adopted unanimously.
Mr. Bryan characterized the recall as the
simple process by which the people remove a
toTeave0'1 " PUb"C CHb befre he is ready
hvLin LGVernor ,Carey' "l am gd to sit
by the side of a man who, while calling himself
a progressive republican! has shown himself
Interested n a real progressive movement. Back
of the action of both democrats and progres
sive republicans Is the same essential fo?ce
ae enerine uPon a great campaign I
have jUBt one interest in this campaign I want
the republicans to put up their best men and
I want the democrats to do the same: Then
whichever s de loses, the people will win.
our party has been making a brave fiehr
and speaking for myself, I would ratter be a
part of a party In the minority, as our part?
has been, and yet dominate the political sift?
tion and the legislation of the majority nartv"
I would rather coerce a majority th hSIL
to a majority and be led by tlie minority " g
STEEL
Said Louis D. Brandeis recently "TTn,w
the guise of protecting American labor j P
England employees "ork n ,,n
week. To work men 12 ho.S, GVen days a
a week, with an occasional 2 J hn7 SGVen days
when the shift Is mad m5 ho,1I Worday
men at forty" but nece'ssaHw'LS nJy 'old
The51111 toJln o
Sot half. He was already iS JP- camegie
has given awatlos 000 oo?S.?Bely,rtcl1- He
his income hout'&Bontot
He has boasted reneatomv ? "P n ,nis capital,
five other million! "making" thirty-
Mr!Vw nlllar h
could make steel rails at amIn, America wo
and with such i IneWente ?PS?flt f?r 1C a tonJ
Syria, freight free a $22 r?te 8al of ralls
soiling here at $28 Befor?fti thoy woro
bill was passed Mr ' Carnegie told nT'Aldrlch
moans committee !MdSf1Ig!
VOLUME 12, NUMBER 9
ture needs no protective tariff. He has jurt re
peated tho statement to tho Stanley cor.nnitiea"
TKo federal bureau of stastltics ic parts to
day "the higli-record exportation of practically
a quarter billion dollars' worth of iron and steel
manufactures" in 1911. We have one-quarter
of all tho steel-export trade of the world, and
nearly half the production. Tho Steel trust
alone makes moro steel than Belgium, France
and the United Kingdom combined.
And yet if a bill reducing the tariff on steel
to a revenue basis were presently to come out
of the democratic house, should we not hear
once more from senate stand-patters the old
hypocritical whinings ahout retaining the "pro
tection of the American workingman?" Now
York World.
FOOD FOR SERIOUS THOUGHT
Huntington, W. Va., Dec. 27, 1911. Tn my
study of social and political as well as the econo
mic, ethical and religious phenomena of this
age I found the inclosed prophecy of Thomas
Babington Macaulay and it struck me that we
aro in that very season where the government
is helpless and I wish you would give your
opinion in some articles in The Commoner. I
am a constant reader of your paper and note
your favor to the initiative, referendum and
recall and other reforms that appeal to the
sovereign powers of the people. Is it your
opinion that this republic is struggling with a
foe that is too great for it, and will ultimately
put us in the hands of a Caesar or Napoleon? 1
believe we are on the verge of civil war and
pillage and plunder and the government is too
weak to handle the rcreat problem. Or will we
have a "Moses" to lead us out. Have we a man
that is brave enough to risk popularity 'or even
life to thwart the oncoming struggle between
the two classes? Is it not a fact that the con
stitution is all sail and no anchor? Please deal
with this in the immediate future. Respectfully
yours, B. W. WEBSTER.
LORD MACAULAY'S PROPHECY
Thomas Babington Macaulay, statesman, his
torian, and essayist, wrote a letter to an
American, Mr. Henry S. Randall in- 1867, from
which the following is an extract:
"Through such seasons the United States will
have to pass in the course of the next century,
if not of this. How will you pass through them?
I heartily wish you good deliverance; but my
reason and my wishes are at war, and I can
not help foreboding the worst. It- Is quite plain
that your government will never be able to re
strain a distressed and discontented majority.
For, with you, the majority is tho government,
and has the rich, who are always in the minority,
absolutely at its mercy. The day will como when,
in the state of New York, a multitude of people,
none of whom has more than half a breakfast,
or expect to have more than half a breakfast,
choose a legislature. Is it possible to doubt
what sort of a legislature will be chosen? On
the one side is a statesman preaching patience,
respect for vested rights, strict observance of
public faith; on the other is a demagogue, rant
ing about the tyranny of the capitalists and
usurers, and asking why anybody should be per
mitted to drink champagne and to ride in a car
riage while thousands of honest folk are in want
of necessaries. Which of the two candidates
is likely to be preferred by n workman who
hears his children cry for bread?
I seriously apprehend you will, in some such
?hf2n ad,y,ersity as I have described, do
w,L"B5, wil1 Prevent prosperity from return
ing that you will act like people who should, in
a season of scarcity, devour all the seed-corn,
hn? JS ma?e next year not one of scarcity,
.mu absolute famine.
t!nnThw6S T111 be' ! fear spoliation. The spolia
S?nSJ lncJoal th distress. The distress
to Itnl C 5esh sPllaton. There is nothing
oW y a' TYouLconstltution is all sail and no
SStSSfl rtnV S2id before' wllen a society ha3
2ftHn S m? ?ownard course, either civili
S Z "ber,ty rast perish. Either .some
efnmpnf wmPOleo.n wil1 seIze thG reins of gov
R;ft a strong hand, or your republic
barba?ianR w? ully Plunered and laid waste by
mS? . n the tWGntieth century as the Ro
man empire was in the fifth."
subscrinHnitcLA1?,"Enclosed yu w" nd four
Pleased Ttbree renowals and one new.
makes ?hrtm n your ll8t at once- ThIfl
wUhln thlnvTl0Vfn namea I ave sent you
Barnofe Ja8t enty days Send me moro
SlstrlhiitEX S 1 and l w111 Si tbem careful
sent vmi tL0?80 Bnd me moro stationery. I
sent you twenty subscribers last year.
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