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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (April 26, 1912)
The Commoner. WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR VOL. 12, NO. 16, Lincoln, Nebraska, April 26, 1912 Whole Number 588 Mr. Bryan's Ohio Text At each of bis twenty Ohio meetings, Mr. Bryan read the following: The issue this year is exactly the same that it was in 1896 namely, the people versus Wall street.. The money question was merely an incident of the campaign of '96, just as tho tariff question is merely an Incident of the present campaign. THE REAL. QUESTION IS WHETHER THE GOVERNMENT IS TO BE RUN BY THE PEOPLE, IN THE INTEREST OF THE PEOPLE, OR BY WALL STREET, IN THE IN TEREST OF WALL STREET. The fight made by the democratic party in 1896 was tho first great protest against tho control of the government by tho predatory in terests. The Wall street democrats then joined the republican tfarty and, with the aid of the largest campaign fund ever used, and by means of coercion, such as was never practiced before, defeated the democratic ticket. Governor Harmon, who was then 50 years old, and a member of President Cleveland's cabinet, joined with President Cloveland and the rest of the cabinet in opposing the demo cratic party and in electing as the republican president, William McKinley, the high priest of protection. I affirm that Governor Harmon has not changed in heart since that time. I affirm that his sympathies are with Wall street today, as they were then, and that his nomination would put the control of the party v in the hands of Wall street. If Governor Harmon denies this let him show where he has ever publicly admitted that he and President Cleveland were wrong in assisting the republican party in 1896. If ho was right in '96, then tho nearly half million democrats of Ohio who voted for me that year were wrong. If he and the democrats of Ohio are together now, either he bas changed or they have changed, and I am here to show, you that he has not changed. The vote at the primaries, May 21, will show whether the democrats of this state, after the gallant fight they have made for the protection of the people against the Wall street plunder bund, are ready to put their necks under the yoke and surrender tho government into the hands of those who have, for a generation, re sorted to every means of deception, corrup tion, and intimidation to exploit the masses. This is the issue in Ohio as it is all over the country. I wish it were possible for you to vote directly for presidential candidates in the districts, as CONTENTS MR. BRYAN'S OHIO TEXT " MORGAN'S PERSONAL CHOICE . "A DICTATOR" SENATOR KERN'S GREAT SPEECH OWEN ANSWERS JONES "BIG BUSINESS" WANTS THE COURT GOVERNOR HARMON'S CONFESSION HOME RULE FOR IRELAND MR. BRYAN'S NEW YORK INTERVIEW PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCES A TERRIBLE DISASTER HOME DEPARTMENT NEWS OF THE WEEK WASHINGTON NEWS 0 MORGAN'S PERSONAL CHOICE New York, Feb. 24, 1010. Special to the Cincinnati Enquirer. A Washing ton dispatch to tho Newark Evening News is as follows: "Believing that Theodore Roosevelt will bo tho republican nominee for presi dent in 19113 and that it will bo impos sible for the standpatters and reaction aries to retain control of congress and the federal government through the re publican organization, Wall street in terests arc preparing to dominate tho democratic national convention in that . year and nominate a man of their selec tion on the democratic ticket. "J. Pierpont Morgan has taken a di recting hand in the program and Francis Lynde Stetson, a prominent corporation lawyer, closely identified with big finan cial interests, is in charge of the work of capturing tho democratic organiza tion. Governor Judson Harmon, of Ohio, is Mr. Morgan's personal choice for the presidency." Two years ago last February J. Pier pont Morgan picked out Governor Har mon as his PERSONAL' CHOICE. How do the plain democrats like to have Morgan pick our candidate? 0 well as in th,o state at largo. But in tho dis tricts you nmst vote for delegates committed to candidjitiejnjnstead of for tho candidates themselves.-:" ' In this state your choice is limited to Har mon and Wilson and I urge you to vote for Wilson and for Wilson delegates. If the issue were between Harmon and Clark, I would urge you to vote for Clark and for Clark delegates. If the issue were between Harmon and any other progressive, I would urgo you to vote for the progressive whoever ho might be and for progressive delegates. In other words, I am for any progressive against any reactionary for tho people and against Wall street all tho timo. Mr. Bryan proceeded to furnish proof show ing Governor Harmon's constant and continu ing devotion to Wall street and Wall street's confidence in him. PATENT LEGISLATION It seems likely that congress will at last take some action on the subject of patents. On an other page will be found an outline of a bill now under consideration. It should be so amended as to fix a money limit as well as a time limit to patents. Why not provide for the termina tion of a patent when it has earned a reason able amount the amount to bo fixed arbitrarily in the law? A patent is intended to stimulate invention and to reward the Inventor; when Jt has served that purpose the monopoly which it confers should end. A value limit is more defensible than a time limit but there is no reason why we should not have both. KERN'S GREAT SPEECH On another page will be found Senator Kern's great speech on pensions. Read it. It shows his power as an orator, and more than that, it shows his sense uof justice1 and breadth of sympathy. Senator Kern is justifying the hopes of his friends; he is one of the growing democrats watch him grow. "A Dictator' Editorial In Tho Commoner of Fobruary 19, 19 01: Tho reorganizes aro with one voico accusing Mr. Bryan of trying to "dictate" to the democratic party. What has Mr. Bryan dono to justify the charge? Ho has expressed it as his opinion that tho Kansas City platform should bo reaffirmed, and for this ho is now beijig cen sured by tho bolters and by those who are try ing to put tho bolters in control of tho organi zation. If Mr. Bryan had declared himself in favor of abandoning tho Kansas City platform would they have accused him of dictating? Not at all, Ho would have been praised by tho gold organs and they would havo abused any ono who dissented from him. "Dictating," it would seem, Is defined, not as the offering of sugges tions, but as tho offering of suggestions objec tionable to tho men and newspapers to whoso opposition tho party owes its recent defeats. Mr. Bryan has a right to agreo with them, but no right, they think, to diffor from them. Mr. Cleveland has been offering advice: ho has declared that the party ought to return to what ho calls "sanity" and yet nono of theso organs1 have denounced Mr. Cleveland aB a dic tator. They havo not oven questioned tho propriety of his expressing an opinion on party policy. Tho fact that Mr. Bryan has twice been tho candidate of his party would, according to their logic, compel him to keep silent, while tho fact that Mr. Cleveland has twice thrown hia influence to the republican party givcB him a right to speak. Even republican papers can seriously counsel the democratic party with out arousing a protest from those editors who mask their plutocratic designs under a demo cratic name, but it is regarded as utterly repre hensible that a former candidate should confer with those who voted for him. What is tho explanation of this bitter and unreasonable criticism? Simply that the re organizers are attempting to deceive tho public and it makes them angry to havo their plans exposed. Mr. Bryan has not sought to forco his opinion on any one. Ho has expressed him self, as every citizen has a right to do, and ho has no desire to influence his co-workers except insofar as his arguments are found to bo sound. It is not Mr. Bryan that they havo to meet, but tho honest conviction of the millions of demo crats who havo maintained their integrity in spite of threats and bribes. A little child can, by quoting tho commandment, "Thou shalt not steal," throw a crowd of would-be burglars into confusion. They would fear not tho child, but tho doctrine he proclaims. And it would seem, that Mr. Bryan's suggestion of an honest plat form has brought similar consternation among tho men who aro plotting a betrayal of tho people. If theirs was an open and an honest work they would not abuse Mr. Bryan they would be content to announce their platform, give their reasons for it and appeal to the voters of the party, but instead of that, they fly into a passion and deny the right of any one to differ from them. They may as well know that their scheme will be opposed and that they will bo. compelled to come from under cover. For seven years the corporation newspapers and tho leaders of the reorganization move ment have been working for the most part under ground they havo lauded every tool of organized wealth and attempted to assassinato the character of every one who would not join them. They have made a constant assault on democratic principles and were expecting to complete their plans at St. Louis, but they now realize that they must face tho indignation which their repeated perfidy has aroused. Their chief argument is that they can point tho way to victory and they have impressed a few who havo forgotten the disastrous defeat of 1894 when the reorganizers last led and tho rout of the Palmer and Buckner ticket which they supported. They havo won over a few whoso hunger for spoils is stronger than desire for re- . t-iBA-. ..J.,. 'l-'MJLLSadik44MjUJt'-' :AAy.Aat.JMr. --.i, ?&tfjt'.:
