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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (July 26, 1912)
The Commoner. JULY' 26; 1912 BUY MONTIOELLO 'A senate committee lias unanimously agreed upon' a resolution for the appointment of a com mission to ascertain the advisability of the pur chase by the government of Monticello, tho homo of Thomas Jefferson. Mrs, Martin Littleton, tho talented wife of Representative Littleton, of New York, appeared before tho committee and urged the purchase of this estate. It is now owned by Jefferson M. Levy of New York, and it Is estimated that the government could ac quire title to this property for about $200,000. Mrs. Littleton is to bo commended for . her good efforts and congress ought to act upon her suggestion. There is no name in American his tory more important than the name of Jefferson. The purchase of Monticello and its maintenance by the government would aid materially in the cultivation of the principles for which Jeffer son stood. In a speech delivered in tho houso of repre sentatives June 5, 1904, Mr. Bryan paid this tribute to Jefferson: "There, are wrongs to be righted; .there are evils to. be eradicated; there is injustice to be reproved; there is good to be secured for those who toil and wait. In this fight for equal laws we can not fail, for right is mighty and will in time triumph over all obstacles. Even, if our own eyes do not behold success we know that our labor is not in vain, and we can lay down our weapons, happy in the promise given by Bryant to the soldier: V ' Yea, though thou lie upon the dust; When they who helped thee flee in fear. Die full of hope and manly trust, Like those who fell in battle hero. " ' Another hand thy sword shall wield; Another hand the standard wave; Till from the trumpet's mouth is pealed The blast of triumph o'er thy grave. "Let us, then, with the courage of Andrew Jackson, apply to present conditions the princi ples taught by Thomas , Jefferson Thomas Jefferson, tho greatest constructive statesman whom the world has ever known J tho grandest warrior who ever battled for human liberty! F quarried from the mountain of eternal tru'a the four pillars, upon whose strength all popu lar government must rest. In tho Declaration of American Independence he proclaimed the prin ciples with which there is, without which there can not be, 'a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.' When he declared that 'all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalien able rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights governments are institued among men, deriving their just powers from tho con sent of the governed,' he declared all that lies between the Alpha and Omega of. democracy. "Alexander 'wept for other worlds to con quer,' after he had carried his victorious banner through the then known world; Napoleon 're arranged the map of Europe with his sword amid the lamentations of those by whose blood he was exalted; but when these and other. mili tary heroes are forgotten and their achievements disappear in the cycle's sweep of years, children will stili lisp the name of .Jefferson, and. free men will ascribe due praise to him who filled the kneeling subject's heart with hope and bade him stand erect a sovereign among his peers." "BACK TO WORK" Washington dispatches say that William Lorl mer, late senator, is "going back to work," but that he is not fully decided whether to re-enter politics and seek vindication. The best way for Mr. Lorimer to vindicate th'o friendship shown him by many distinguished men 'would bo the devotion of his efforts to good citizenship. He would do well to forget the past and abandon all effort to justify his election to the senate. Doubtless Mr. Lorimer has many fine personal dualities. Men who re joiced to see tho senate expel him will cherish the hope that his future life may be a happy one and full of genuine service. He can not, how ever, win this happiness by doing anything more in defense of the methods through which he se cured his seat in the United States senate. Suppose the Baltimore convention had known of the $250,000 contributed by August Belmont (one of the men condemned by resolution) to Judge Parker's campaign fund, would the con tention have selected him" to sound the key-not totii&Y progressive campaign? And Mr. Ryan la yet to hear from. ' a;f "The Folks at Home" in West Virginia William R. Thompson was nominated for Governor of West Virginia at a convention hold at Huntington. It will bo remembered that former Governor William A. McCorklo of West Virginia fought the Belmont-Ryan resolution offered by .Mr. Bryan at Baltimore. Tho Hunt ington correspondent for tho Cincinnati En quirer says that when Mr. McCorklo intro duced a resolution providing that resolu tions introduced into tho state convention ho referred to tho resolutions committee without debate "ho was hissed from the floor of tho convention and driven to his seat." Referring to tho convention proceedings the Enquirer's correspondent says: The demonstration came when McCorklo In troduced a resolution providing that any reso lution introduced in tho convention bo referred to tho committee on resolutions without debate. McCorklo was slated to bo chairman of- tho committeo of resolutions. Tho cat calls and hisses started in tho Ohio county delegation when McCorklo attompted to speak on tho resolution, and in an instant spread throughout tho hall. McCorklo attempted to gain recognition to withdraw tho resolution after It had met with strenuous objection, but was forced to take hl3 seat and send word to tho chairman that ho desired tho resolution withdrawn. Tho convention was called to order by Stato Chairman W. G. Bennett. He named John H. Holt, of Huntington, as the temporary chairman; A. E. Kenny, of Cal houn county, temporary secretary; M. A. Strlck ler, assistant secretary, and H. A. Garden, as sergeant-at-arms. Judge Holt sounded the keynoto in an ad dress that bristled with denunciation of tho favoring of special privilege under republican rule, and the promise of a change under demo cratic rule. In one of his characteristic cli maxes ho mentioned- the namo of Woodrow Wil son, but soon as tho lullcamo, a Hitch ie county delegato throw tho convention into an uproar with "hurrah for Bryan." This tho speaker took up by declaring tho world had produced two great commoners, Wil liam Pitt and William Bryan. Tho Bryan demonstration continued for eight minutes. Mr. Holt said: "Four years more have rolled away and once again the democracy of West Vir ginia, through its accredited representatives, is gathered in state convention. Tho times aro auspicious. After nearly fifty years of con tinuous republican rule in tho nation and one third that period in tho state, wo aro at last gathered today around the open grave of the re publican party. Wo come ready and willing to perform the last sad rites and to seo that sho has decent burial. When wo look over her long record and reflect upon what would be an appro priate epitaph wherewith to mark her last rest ing place, we can think of nothing more suitable than that, 'Here lies the champion and advo cate of special privilege, who has left behind a mistreated, impoverished and indignant people.' "Upon the subject of the tariff there must bo no hesitation, there can bo no compromise. We must stand flatfooted on the constitution. So long as we have representatives in congress vot ing for a protective tariff upon coal, and so long as we have democrats in congress from the state of Virginia voting for a protective tariff upon peanuts, wo can not expect to succeed. There can be no proper reformation of customs duties. "When wo further review tho history of tho republican party we find that It has almost completed the centralization of our government. This evolutionary process began in tho days of tho federalists, and was subsequently checked through tho democracy of Jefferson. Later tho pendulum began to swing In that direction once again during tho old whig regime, and was taken up by the republican -party, and such has been the tendency from that time till now. "When tho history of this country shall finally come to bo written one brilliant advocate of this modern doctrine of the election of senators by the people will take his place alongside of Jefferson and Jackson as distinctive and char acteristic as theirs, and his democracy has been as pure indeed, he gives you the key to tho true theory of local self-government; and the day Is not far distant when tho American people will rocognizo him not only as a benefactor, but asa patriot Mas-well! ' The Englishrspeaking .people"- have 'produced lVto,o great) J commoner ono was William Pitt, and tho other is William Bryan." "THE FOLKS AT HOME" DID THIS BUSINESS Louis F Post In The Public: It is no empty compliment, that which pretty much all tho papers but Hearst's tho lattor for obvious and disgusting reasons aro paying to William J. Bryan as tho Warwick at Baltimore. Few pub lic men of any country or time, having his op portunities for solf-sorvlcc, would have under taken what ho accomplished: no other man in our timo and country could havo accomplished it had he made tho effort. Tho convention had been well put together for a deflnlto and treach erous purpose. Bryan dotoctod tho. fraud and promptly denounced it. His fight had overy appearance of a hopeless one. Tho scheme had been put together so well that tho schemers held a majority of tho convention under their control at first. But back of Bryan woro tho "folks at homo." As ho pummelpd away, lone somo in leadership, but not In support, tho treacherous plans of tho plutocrats slowly disin tegrated; and Bryan's fidelity and courago were at Inst rewarded by the convention's nomination of tho ono principal candldato to whom tho Interests, from their sad experience with him in Now Jersey, were unaltorably opppsed., A SQUARE GAME CONTEST Editorial in Moberly (Me.) Democrat: At tacked without cause Bryan was plunged into a fight not of his own making. Tho national committeo exemplified tho old adage, "Whom the Gods would destroy they first made mad." Impelled by over-confldonco In their strength and animated by animosity to Bryan they imagined they would first bo ablo to clout him in tho faco and olimlnato him afterwards. They knew the nomination of Parker would bo objec tionable' to the larger wing of tho party repre sented by Bryan and to Bryan himself. And imagining they had him in a corner they ex pected to knock him out with tho first blow. Then followed tho most remarkable exhibi tion of generalship and political manipulation tho world has ever seon. Ho went down for tho first round and Parker was olectod temporary chairman. Tho interests back of Parker thought that Bryan would take tho count. Ho was mere ly gaining an estimate of tho forces he must fight. He took a correct involco and gavo a handsome exhibition of ring generalship. He was in a corner no longer. From that timo he occupied tho center of tho ring. Tho second round was his. Permanent chairmanship, tho third round was his. Abolishing the unit rule. Tho fourth was his introducing tho resolution relative to Ryan, Belmont and Morgan. From the first round he was master of tho ring. Ho could take punishment without a whimper. Ho could giye It and the crowd ho fought wasn't as game as tho man they fought. , It was a square game contest and not a blow below the belt. It establishes tho champion as the gamest political fighter in tho country, and proves that ho is the ablest organizer and has more knowledge of the political prize ring than all his opponents combined. After the first round ho never struck a blow that didn't count Moberly Monitor. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 CIRCULATE THE COMMONER An old-time reader of The Commoner writes: "Wherever Tho Commoner is regularly read tho democratic vote in creases Ono of the most effectivo methods" of increasing Governor Wilson's" vote would be by tho circulation of The Commoner (particularly among men who have heretofore voted the republi can ticket) in every state of tho union. I suggest that you make a special rate for campaign purposes and I oni sure there are many hard working democrats who will take advantage of that rate to nut Tho Commoner recrulnrlv intn h- iy nanus or tneir republican neighbors." The Commoner will be sent to any 0 one from now until tho close of the 1012 cumpalgn for the sum of 35c, or three subscriptions will bo entered until tho W close or the campaign for $1.00. ' " !, 1 ., 0 3 0 3. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 i Yi.jyi&kkaAi, Iki t-.ep. u i.- us