AUGUST 2, 19 1
The Commoner.
15
MR. CLARK'S CRITICISMS
Louis F. Post in The Public: One
of the Hearst papers attributes this
language to Speaker Clark:
"I lost tlfe nomination solely
through the vile and malicious sland
ers of Colonel William Jennings
Bryan of Nebraska. True, these
slanders were by innuendo and in
sinuation, but they were no less
deadly for that reason."
It may not be true that Mr. Clark
has used this language. We hope he
has not, and trust that no one will
accuse him of it without better
authority. But the idea thus offen
sively expressed, that Bryan accused
Clark of making a treacherous bar
gain, must have lodged in the latter's
mind or he could not have expressed
himself as he did in his convention
letter to Senator Stone. The fact is,
however, that Mr. Bryan made no ac
cusation of bad faith against Mr.
Clark neither directly nor by innu
endo or insinuation. The utmost that
can be inferred from what he said as
in any way reflecting upon Mr.
Clark, was that Mr. Clark was the
unconscious factor in a plan "to sell
the democratic party into bondage
to the predatory interests of this
country;" not that he had been false,
but that ho had been duped. And
this was true. Mr. Clark's manifest
innocence of the bargain relieves him
of all possible imputations of bad
faith; but it added nothing to his
qualifications for the presidency in
times like these. Mr. Bryan would
have been basely disloyal to all that
he represents in public life if he had
allowed a personal friendship or
obligation to blind him or silence
him. It is better by far to be called
"ingrate" by self-seeking. friends than
to be traitor to a people's cause.
Sneaker Clark and 'bis friends
don't seem to realizeuthat the very
nature of their assaults3 upon-Bryan
goes to prove that Bryan performed
a public duty 'in -securing Wilson's
nomination. . They put all their em
. phasis in, Clark's behalf upon his hav
ing earned public preferment by long
and unbroken service to the demo
cratic organization, right or wrong;
they put all their emphasis in criti
cising Bryan, upon Clark's past ser
vice t- him as the .presidential can
didate of his party. ' The. whole Clark
campaign, so -far as .iiia- managers
have made it public, waa a campaign
for personal reward. To that end
their demands upon Bryan were to
redeem personal obligations which
they wrongly assumed that he in
curred through the support Clark had
given to him in three presidential
campaigns, and which Bryan rightly
insisted were not in the nature of
personal obligations at all. This ani
mus, which permeated the Clark
campaign and broke out at the end
in spasms of ridiculous indignation,
points to the Inherent weakness of
Mr. Clark's candidacy the weakness
upon which Mr. Taft's managers had
shrewdly counted in their solicitude
for Mr. Clark's nomination.
THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINATIONS
Pittsburgh Post: The nomination
of Woodrow Wilson for president by
the democratic national convention
on the forty-sixth ballot is a clean
cut victory for the progressive senti
ment which has been so vigorously
asserting itself in all parties. As
between Governor Wilson and any of
the other leading candidate's at Balti
more including Champ Clark, Gov
ernor Harmon, or Representative
Underwood Governor Wilson un
questionably was by far the more
representative of progressive ideas.
The nomination of Speaker Clark, his
most formidable competitor, would
have, been one of those tactical
blunders for which .the democratic
.party has become, justly, or unjustly,
famous. The afllillations of Clark
in, the convention were not of the
sort to inspire confidence. 'Further
more, as Colonel Bryan pointed out
in his reply to Clark, the latter and
his frends at no stago of the pro
ceedings gave the slightest aid to the
progressive forces but grouped them
selves with the Tammany-Wall street
crowd at every opportunity. The
prompt and unhesitating stand Gov
ernor Wilson's leaders took on the
progressive side at the very start un
questionably bad much to do with
Col. Bryan's decision that Wilson
was the proper man for the progres
sives to unite upon. The fate of
Champ Clafk as a presidential candi
date was sealed, in other words,
when his adherents supported Parker
for temporary chairman.
It goes almost without saying that
Governor Wilson could not have been
nominated had it not been for the
magnificent generalship of Colonel
Bryan, who was the head and front
of the progressive forces from the
opening to the close of the conven
tion and whose matchless vigilance,
sagacity, experience, combined with
rare courage, did -more than anything
else to give the progressive cause the
final victory. He was beyond any
question the dominating personality
of tho convention. His support of
Governor Wilson was a fine spectacle
In view of tho fact that if he had
used his powers he could certainly
havo secured tho nomination for him
self. He is the favorite of tho demo
cratic rank and file as Colonel Roose
velt is of the republican rank and
file.
Tho consolation of those who
would like to havo seen Colonel
Bryan tho nominee is this, that no
body can now say ho waged this
splendid battle for progressive prin
ciples with any selfish motive. In
tho impressive speech he made re
signing bis leadership to Governor
Wilson ho declared with perfect
truth that lils testimony for the party
in tho coming campaign will be free
from all accusation, of self-interest
or bias.
MRS. CHAMP CLARK "DONE
WITH DEMOCRATIC PARTY"
Washington, July 3. After Gover
nor Wilson's nomination at Balti
mors, Mrs. Champ Clark, speaking to
the newspaper men said: "1 am
gravely and groviously disappinted.
For twelve years I have shared my
husband with the democratic party.
The party has been my only rival. I
am done with it. The junior mem
ber of the firm of Clark & Clark is
done. I have known for all these
twelve years that William Jennings
Bryan was a false friend to my hus
band. I have warned him over and
over again. Mr. Bryan is too selfish,
too self-centered to be a friend to
anyone. Ho has thus, under tho
cover of this false friendship, been
Champ's foe. He even went so far
as one time to go into Mr. Clark's
own district in an endeavor to de
feat him. Mr. Bryan has his candi
date in Mr. Wilson; let him elect
him."
PRECIOUS ATTRIBUTES
"Why are diamonds so highly
valued?"
"I suppose," replied Mr. Growcher,
"it's because they are made of car
bon, which is the equivalent of coal,
and at the same time look like ice."
Washington Star.
HOW HE LOST OUT
Wichita (Kan.) Beacon: Champ
Clark lost out at Baltimore because
he let practical politics obscure moral
vision.
To him the nomination was every
thing; the principle was subordinate
to personal ambition. Like many
other weak men he lost sight of the.
moral issue, and tied up to Tammany
hall. He was willing to do business
with anyono who could nominato
him. Ho can't understand yet what
happoned to him. The moral sense
of tho country is keener than Mr.
Clark's moral sense; tho country
understands! The country sees no
treachery in Mr. Bryan's
Clark. Bryan quit Clark
gave himself away. If
been tho Bryan typo or
type he would luivo boon
but he showed the white
first day.
attitude to
when Clark
Clark had
tho Wilson
nominated,
feather tho
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