Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 29, 1912)
wr" vjf 5f w? jmw "" NOVEMBER 29, 1912 than the present system. Now, a president claims a second term as an indorsement of his first term and feels that he has been repudiated if a second term is denied him. So strong is the pressure brought by friends that some of our presidents have run a second time in spite of the arguments they have themselves ad vanced in favor of a single term. If a president is looking forward to a second term it is next to impossible not to use the first term as a moans of getting the second. The pressure, of ambition and self-interest on the mind must be taken into consideration. The country is entitled to the best service that a president can render, and frail human nature is weak enough when strongest. One entrusted with the enormous power given into the hands of a president ought to consecrate himself to his country's service with no selfish interest to blind his eyes or pervert his judgment. The present threat of a third term ought to hasten the submission of an amendment limiting the president to a single term preferably to a four year term, but to a six-year term at most. WICKERSHAM ADMITS RESPONSIBILITY Special dispatch to New York World: Wash ington, Nov. 19. John D. Archbold, president of the Standard Oil company; H. C. Folger, jr., president of the Standard of New York, and W. C. Teagle, director, for whoso arrest warrants were issued by the state of Texas, haB found a protector in the attorney general of tho United States. The oil magnates were indicted by a federal grand jury in Dallas, Tex., and the warrants were sent for service to the federal marshal in New York. Mr. Wickersham ordered that they be hot served until the department of justice could investigate. Charles G. Morrison, of Chi cago, was directed to report on the case. The attorney, general then decided that there Is not sufficient evidence to compel tho removal to Texas of Messrs. Archbold, Folger and Teaglo for trial. William H. Gray, a" lawyer of Houston, Texas, who. testified before the grand jury which brought tho indictments, with Representative George Burgess, of Texas, saw Mr. Wickersham today to urge the service of tho warrants. "Mr. Wickersham stated to mo that he per son nlly was responsible for these warrants not beiuj served," said Mr. Gray after the con ference. "He told me he had ordered the United States marshal in New York not to make the ' arrests until he decided whether the grand jury was warranted in finding the indictments against them for violating the Texas anti-trust law. The absorption of the Magnolia Petroleum company of Texas by them in defiance of the decree of the court is the offense charged. "I took issue with Mr. Wickersham, saying that I believed there was sufficient evidence to convict. I said I believed that proof of the find ing of the indictment and proof that the persona whose arrest was sought were the particular ones named iri the indictment would be sufficient to warrant the commissioner to compel them to give bond for their appearance before tho federal court in Dallas in January or, iri caso they did- not 'give bondj to remand them to tho custody of the United tates marshal in Dallas, Texas. "I did not believe it was within the province of the United States commissioner in New York to try the case on Its merits to ascertain whether. he, in his judgment, thought the evidence suffi cient to convict them in Texas. I thought the ' warrants ought to be served. Were these ordi nary men, that Is the way the matter undoubt edly would be disposed of and therein lies the coro of it; are .they ordinary. men? "Fortunate, indeed, is one who can have his case, after indictment and before arrest, tried . in the department of justice and every detail of it examined to determine the extent of guilt be fore the trial. This is a privilege not extended to -ordinary men and not Invoked in ordinary cases, and I say this dispassionately and with all respect to" Mr. Wickersham, and the high office which ho holds. "One might infer that tho Standard Oil men ' are unwilling to give bond for their appearance before the federal court in Dallas for trial in January, but will contest every move in the case and that dismissal of the indictments, rather than vindication by public trial, is what they seek. This inference is based on 'tho remarks of Mr. Wickersham to the effect that ho did not believe they could be removed. All the men - named in the indictment with the exception of The Commoner. Archbold, Folger and Teaglo, have boon served with tho warrants," concluded Mr. Gray. When shown tho statement issued by Mr. Gray, Attorney General Wickorshara tonight said: "I told Mr. Gray that I had directed that the warrants bo not served upon tho non-resident defendants because tho ovidenco at tho disposal of the government so far as it had been disclosed to me was in my opinion insufficient to sustain removal proceedings. I told him that I had sent for the United States attorney in Dal las to come to Washington and confor about the case. Mr. Gray said ho was counsel for the Waters-Pierce Oil company; that ho had boon a 3 witness before the grand jury and that ho know tho facts would sustain tho charge. I then mad an appointment to confor with him 'tomorrow. This was practically all that passed botweon us. Apparently, ho has roponled of his i romlso to re turn and assist tho department and prefers to rush into print with his statements." Mr. Archbold was said not to bo In his offico yesterday. Tho legal department of tho Stand ard Oil company sent out word to reporters that Mr. Archbold would accopt sorvico as :oon as an effort was made to havo Itim carried baok to Toxas to answor tho indictment. A Mississippi Opinion of The Commoner Editor Several Commoner readers havo sent copies of tho Wayno County (Miss.) Booster, with tho request that a tribute to Mr. Bryan, writton by John P. Davis, tho Booster editor, bo re produced. Tho article follows: Tho Booster takes off its hat to Mr. Bryan and tenders him its congratulations on the success of democracy. To him moro than to any other man or group of men this success Ib duo. Now there are a few Httlo fellows hero and there will turn up their noses at this. A few. Sometime ago when most of tho big business men of the country turned their backs on Bryan (and lots of them knew about as much about political economy as a Papago Indian knows about the pants pattern of Pythagoras) it hap pened as a matter of courso that hero and there some little storo keeper or clerk or some follow with a little monoy loaned out on a mortgage felt It incumbent on him to kick Bryan, because it was tho thing for tho moneyed men of tho country to do. Mr. Bryan was about as con scious of these kicks as a bull buffalo is of a gnat on his horn. It used to givo me tho stomach acho (though tho old fashioned way of saying It would oxpress it better) when I would hoar some men say, "Oh, yes; I reckon I'll havo to vote for him, being he is the nominee but ho won't bo elected." Nice examplo of party loyalty wasn't it? And so very encouraging. About the time tho recent campaign was bo ginning they were fond of referring to Bryan as a "dead one." A number of the leading news papers did this. Well, the convention met at Baltimore, find somehow the "dead ono" was resusicated enough to bo on hand, and before the convention was a day old tho entiro country found out a mistako had been made in tho autopsy held over the political remains of Wil liam Jennings Bryan by the head knockers some months previous. Anyhow he didn't act liko a man who belonged in a cemetery. To bo candid I will confess that, strong admirer as I have always been of Mr. Bryan, I feared he had let his zeal run away with his judgment when he took the stand which he did in tho Bel mont, Murphy, Ryan matter. I felt how vital was tho necessity for -party unity now of all times; and I thought Mr. Bryan had bettor havo used less of frankness of principle and moro of policy and thus prevented a threatened rupture. It wasn't long until I saw how Httlo wisdom I really had, and in that Incident I got a now conception of the man's greatness. Well, sir, it did me good clear to tho end of my big toes when I saw the greatest papers in the land, some of which had hitherto had but few courteous words for the "down and out" Nebraskan, now in double leaded editorials give honor to him whom they wore pleased to call the greatest man of his party. Not only was tho moral courage superb which would face to face denounce tho schemes of those whoso selfish aims would violate tho principles upon which the party based its hopes, but tho wisdom also waff that of ono who sees afar, for instead of dividing tho party support it won tho support of thousands who now felt that thoy could rely upon tho sincerity of tho party's declarations. In all that great convention of leaders, when a control of affairs was being planned by in terests similar to those which dominated the republican convention, and which but a fow days, ago brought such disaster to that party's hopes, there was but ono man whose courage and wisdom aroso to meet tho needs of tho 'crucial moment, and that man was William J. Bryan. It is to the eternal credit of those great news papers which either condemned him or at best gave him but scant support, that now they aro really great enough to do honor to tho man who deserves tho thanks and gratltudo of every momber of his party and tho respect of every lovor of clean politics. When, aftor his dofoat for tho presidency, he made a trip around tho world ho was mot with honors by rulors and statesmen; with honors such as aro paid to tho victor rather than the vanquished, becauso of tho compelling forco of his gonius as a statesman and tho nobility of his character. Thero is a saying that wiso men change their opinions but fools novor do. There aro somo truo men who honestly dif forod with Mr. Bryan and yot differ, but they acknowledged him as a loader among mon. Thero are somo who got into tho habit of decrying tho man and his policios becauso they saw somebody olso doing it; thoy may keep it up becauso only wiso men change their minds. I hoard Mr. Bryan spoak at Meridian during his first campaign. Tho ladles of tho city took advantage of his coming to ralso money for a monument to tho votorans in Roso Hill ceme tery. Thoy provided a great cotton warohouse, arranged to Boat several thousand people, and charged an admission fee. Whon Mr. Bryan heard there was to bo, a charge for tickets ho was on tho point of cancelling tho engagement until It was explained to hlrn what tho purposowa for. Yot I havo heard men afterwards spoak of how Bryan was making monoy by his cam paign speeches and referred to this aa an In stance. On that occasion thero was an Irishman seated near mo. Ho was pretty full of red eye to begin with, and whon Bryan began to soar above tho clouds in his marvelous bursts of elo quence, tho Irishman could hold In no longer; ho leaped upon his seat, and, swinging his hat, yelled: "Hooray for Willyum Jeems O'Brien, bedad." And now I too, liko tho Irishman, thrlllod with admiration for the matchless wisdom and proven courage of tho great commoner, swing my hat and cry: "Hurrah for William Jennlngi Bryan." MR. WILSON'S TRIBUTE TO MR. BRYAN From Norman 13. Mack's National Monthly! Tho tribute which Woodrow Wilson paid tt William J. Bryan at Lincoln, Neb., in the -early days of his October campaign imbued Mi triumphant tour of the west, and won him friends in every state. It was no perfunctory compliment to tho great commonor. It was the recognition of a leadership that had been ac cepted by tho last national convention pf the democratic party, a leadership which made cer tain tho 1912 candidacy of Woodrow Wilson. Democrats everywhere, whether their origi nal choice in the Baltimore convention was Wil son or Clark, Harmon or Underwood, Foss, or Marshall, Baldwin or Burke, rejoice In the evi dence of party unity thoy see about them. The acclaim of that tremendous Lincoln assemblage of October fifth was in equal measure a tribute to the two distinguished men on the platform and to tho principles of progresslvenes's on which both stand. It was a simple truth, that Governor Wilson spoke when he said: "I am proud to como to Lincoln and render my tribute of respect to the great champion of liberty who set the democratic party free at Baltimore. With the tact which ought to' char acterize a great leader, Mr. Bryan did not at tempt to dictate what the cholco of tho conven tion should be, but ho did attempt to prevent, and he splendidly succeeded In preventing the control of that convention by those interest inimical to the people. If I, as a result of the freedom of that convention, was the choice of & :.juta.