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The Commoner.
VOLUME 12, NUMBER 4(
About The Commoner Editor
faith, and in all the world no man has cleaner
hands. Among great Americans, among great
men of all times, his place is secure.
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Chicago Journal: In this, the hour of demo
cratic triumph, the eyes and hearts of those who
have kept the faith will turn to William Jen
nings Bryan. For this is the hour toward which
Bryan has worked and fought through sixteen
dragging years.
The battleground has shifted. Tho object of
tho battle has remained the same. Bryan's one
unfaltering purpose has been to get government
out of the hands of tho interests, and put it in
the hands of the people.
Bryan has fought Hannaism, and its heir,
which is Rooseveltism.
Ho has fought to break Wall street's grip
on the money and credit of tho people.
Ho has fought for revision of the tariff in
the interest of consumers.
He has fought for the direct election of United
States senators, for presidential preference
primaries, for freedom from the trusts, for free
dom from needless government espionage, for
publicity of campaign contributions, for justice
to tho Philippines.
He has led forlorn hopes:; and he has stepped
aside for another loader when victory was as
sured. His last and greatest battle was to secure
a new leader who could be trusted to carry on
tho fight.
Abating no jot of the admiration due Gover
nor Wilson, taking back no single expression of
confidence in his patriotism, his wisdom, his
'courage, his judgment, the fact remains that tho
heroic figure of this victory for democracy, for
the people, for the republic, is William Jennings
Bryan.
Pittsburgh Leader: Tho result of tho ballot
ing is a magnificent victory for William Jen
nings Bryan.
Tho voters of tho country mado Woodrow
Wilson president of the United States, the
highest ofilco in the gift of the greatest nation of
the world, but the victory is the victory of Wil
liam Jennings Bryan.
The votes have gone to Wilson, but the glory
and tho honors aro for Bryan.
It was Bryan Who mado Wilson possible. It
was Bryan who made the election of Wilson
certain. It was Bryan who made it possible for
tho democratic party to exist to receive victory
at tho hands of the American people, and Wil
liam Jennings Bryan.
Bryan made Wilson a candidate before the
people. Bryan mado Wilson a candidate before
the Baltimore convention. Bryan made Wilson
the winning candidate in that convention, and a
winning cadidate before the American people.
It is a complete, honorable, magnificent victory
for Bryan.
Davenport (Iowa) Times: The democratic
party must thank Mr. Bryan for having the far
sightedness to insist, with all his power, that
Mr. Wilson and not someone else with a long
political record should bo nominated.
Hartford Courant: It must not be forgotten
that .Mr. Bryan will have a hand in the new
order of things. He has waited long, but his
day is at hand. It may not be personal associa
tion, but intellectually he is a part of the "new
order.
Nashville Tennessean: The commanding
sentiment of the American people was accurately
reflected at Baltimore when that great repre
sentative democratic body, led by the great Ne
braBkan, threw off the agencies of greed, and
stood out before the country clean-handed, un
corruptod and unafraid in the advocacy of
those things the people want and which they
have been long denied.
Then it was that democracy triumphed.
Then it was that the party of Jefferson, of
Jackson, of Bryan, of Wilson' and of Marshall
bravely rose to the exigency of the occasion and
became what its originator and expounders de
signed it to be it became the party of the
people as against the party of the interests.
Prom that moment the triumph of tho demo
cratic party was assured.
Even the enemies of democracy felt that the
party of the people, the party of tho constitu
tion and the party of law would triumph.
son had not been long in public life he had
achieved distinction as the scholar in politics
and enjoyed a national reputation. He had kept
pace with the times, was a successful fighter of
the bosses, had made a brilliant and successful
campaign against machine rule. When he was
nominated it was so commonly believed that he
was a true progressive that large defections
from the democracy were considered impos
sible. The very manner of his nomination, the
superb generalship shown by Bryan made as
surance doubly sure on this score, and he has
justified the confidence that was reposed in him.
Dubuque (Iowa) Telegraph-Herald: Let us
not forget, while cheering at Sea Girt, to give
other cheers at Lincoln.
Let us not forget that the man who, more than
any other made Governor Wilson's nomination
and election possible, is William Jennings Bryan.
It was his great patriotism and masterful poli
tical genius that brought about what even at this
distance seems a miracle the nomination of the
one man for president whom the bosses most
wanted to defeat.
It was his unwavering courage that forced the
Baltimore convention to repudiate the men who
seek to underwrite the democratic party for their
own selfish enrichment.
It was he, following unvaringly the compass
of right, who kept the democratic party at Balti
more true to its best traditions and made it
impossible for the opposition truthfully to say
that the nominee of the Baltimore convention
was a bosses' man or a trusts' man.
There are those who say that William Jen
nings Bryan wrecked the democratic party. They
must now, hats in hand, concede that Mr. Bryan
has rehabilitated the democratic party.
YALE WILSON-MARSHALL CLUB
A Wilson-Marshall club, representing the or
ganized democracy of Yale university, was re
cently . organized at New Haven. Wilson C.
Hodges was chosen president and Francis J.
Bennett, secretary. The club had the sanction
of the Connecticut democratic central com
mittee, and co-operated with that organization
in forwarding the cause of democracy in Yale
university and the city of New Haven. At the
first meeting the following resolution was
adopted:
"Whereas, Believing- in the purification of
politics in the United States, and the carrying
.out of those ideals as set forth by our great
leader and standard-bearer, Woodrow Wilson,
the Wilson-Marshall club of Yule university
sends greetings to Nebraska's most gifted son
in his untiring efforts to destroy boss rule and in
his everlasting persistency in urging the Balti
more convention to nominate for the presidency
of the United States a patriotic and high-minded
American citizen."
GOOD LITERATURE
The Commoner: The enclosed list of thirty
subscribers which I hand you herewith, makes
a total of 58 that I have sent you within the
last three weeks. I find it is only a question of
calling the attention of the democrats and also
a good many republicans to Mr. Bryan's paper
to get subscriptions. I attribute it very much
to the fight that Mr. Bryan made at Baltimore.
People are beginning to realize that he is fight
ing the people's battle and Mr. Bryan's influence
is increasing every day. Of the list of 58 which
I have sent you, there are 20 republicans. In
my opinion there is nothing better than The
Commoner for campaign literature. Yours
very truly, E. E. DILATUSH, Decatur, Illr
MR. BRYAN'S PLACE
Chicago Record-Herald: But the democrats
nominated their strongest man. Though Wil-
San Francisco Star: In this hour of triumph
let it not be forgotten that we are indebted to
William Jennings Bryan, more than to any
other living man, for the best things that de
mocracy stands for today. We are also indebted
to him for Woodrow Wilson, whose nomination
he made possible. The services that Bryan has
rendered to the American people in sixteen
years can not be measured today. He has stood
for God, for justice, for truth, for the people and
their rights. Not only has he fought a good
fight, but in every particular he has kept the
" IS THE REPUBLICAN PARTY DEAD
The veteran editor, Henry Watterson believes
that the republican party is dead. In an edi
torial, printed in the Louisville Courier-Journal
Mr. Watterson says: "Tuesday was a proud
day for democracy. Nothing was wanting to
givo It substance, color and effect. The old say
ing that it never rains but it pours was verified.
Mr. Tilden once declared that it requires a revo
lution to loosen the iron grip of the republicans
and to secure a national victory for the demo
crats. Tuesday was a revolution. 'Ground
swell,' exclaimed Hop Price on a memorable
occasion. 'It was an earthquake.' After the
overwhelming triumph of the democratic ticket,
the most decisive feature of this revolution is
the annihilation of the republican party. Us
defeat is even greater than that sustained by
the old-line whigs in the presidential election
of 1852, when Scott, the whig nominee, carried
but four states. The old whig party, be it said,
had never any such hold as the modern repub
lican party. That makes the collapse of the
latter by contrast the more pregnant and sur
prising. "The whigs had hopes of the last. The re
publicans can have none. But they made .bold
to stand against the world.- Today there is none
so poor to do them reverence. With its armor
on, instinct with life, its lines of battle, its
flags and trophies yet visible, the G. 0. P. sinks
as a great wall of stone and iron before a tor
nado into a heap of shapeless ruins. It will
never rise again.
"The little that is left of it the bull moose
will swallow, even as know-nothingism swal
lowed the little that was left of the whigs. The
great ability of Woodrow Wilson is not denied
by his enemies.' No one has questioned his in
tegrity or his courage. The platform on which
he ran is logical, consistent and practicable.
There is nothing empiric about it. In front of
him rise certain great problems of government.
But under the democratic plan their solution
is possible, not theoretical. Behind him stands
the democratic party, revitalized and regene
rated, unterrlfied and undefiled.
"A vote for Wilson, therefore, was a vote
for a change both of parties and policies, for
better things, for hope. Once again, and for the
third time in 52 years, democracy is intrusted
with the government of the country. Shall its
opportunity be lost as twice before it was lost
by Insufficient leadership?
"The word along the line is 'not on your life.'
Let no democrat give entertainment to such a
thought. Let nothing come between any demo
crat and his rejoicing. It was truly a long, long
lane. But its turning is reached and democracy
marches proudly into the great broad highway
of a radiant future. Shout, boys, shout! Let
our songs be 'Old Times Come Again at Last.' "
THE SUN'S WISH
New York Sun: The best wish that the
Sun can express for the president-elect, a com
paratively untried man facing an unparalleled
opportunity, is that he may seize upon the wind
pipe of Bryanism at the very start, and with all
the strength that the sinews of long, lean
fingers possess, throttle that persistent and
fatal thing into eternal silence.
GOOD MEN
The country .and the democratic party are to
be congratulated upon the fine character of the
democratic United States senators and governors
chosen at the recent election. Without an ex
ception they are splendid men and may bo de
pended upon to work for the advancement or
popular government.
ONE WORD
It is reported that when Uncle Joe Cannon
was informed of his defeat he used just one
word and that was "Damn." The people, having
a warm personal affection for Uncle Joe, greetea
the news of his defeat with one word, Glory.
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