v
o
'?
The Commoner
APRIL, 1915
pw
An Unanointed
Prophet
Rear-Admiral Peary, speaking at a republican
banquet in New York recently, said:
"We can not stand still. A hundred years
hence we shall either be obliterated as a nation,
or we shall occupy the entire North American
world segment."
The advantages of free speech are so great,
that we are compelled to accept with these ad
vantages the evils that follow from an occasional
abuse of the privilege by persons sufficiently
prominent to secure publicity for their views. It
is to be regretted, however, that a man known
to the public should so much enjoy indulging his
imagination as to be indifferent to the effect
which his utterances may have upon this coun
try's relations with other nations. Admiral
Peary does not, of course, claim to be inspired
he is simply expressing his private opinion, but
his name, unfortunately, gives wings to his
words. He fixes one hundred years as the period
during which it will be necessary for this govern
ment to secure control of the continent, or dis
appear. Such a prediction' from an obscure man
would be foolish: from one in his position, it is
little less than a crime. His prediction is based
upon an assumption which has been ' demon
strated to be false namely, that a nation must
constantly expand or go into decay.
"We can not stand still," he exclaims, and
then upon this unsupported statement, he pro
ceeds to make a verbal conquest of the rest of
the continent. Why is it impossible for us to
stand still, so far as our territorial boundaries
are concerned? Why is expansion necessary?
And if necessary to us, why is it not necessary
to other nations also? He seems disposed to
apply the Darwinian theory to governments, and
to argue that the big ones must swallow up the
little ones until there is only one big govern
ment left.
One takes great risks when he puts aside the
mental limitations which restrain ordinary mor
tals and claims to KNOW things that are un
knowable. If he will examine the history of the
world, he will learn that many boundary lines
have stood for more than a century, and that
nations that respected boundary lines were not
obliterated. It has been a century since the
boundary line between the United States and
Canada was established, and yet both countries
are more prosperous today than they were a
hundred years ago. This country shares the
larger part of North America with several Spanish-speaking
jepublics, and there is no reason
why there should be any dispute between fhem
in a century or in many centuries. The idea that
a nation can grow only geographically is as un
American as it is untrue. A man usually reaches
his stature by the time -he is twenty-one; after
that he does not grow taller, and if he widens
out, it is not usually a matter to boast of. He
does not say "I can not stop growing": on the
contrary, he is glad to reach a physical limit, for
then he can give his entire thought to intellect
ual development and to moral growth. As with
a man, so with a nation; to measure a nation by
its size is like measuring a man by his height or
weight
There is no reason why the United States
should not grow larger in all that makes a na
tion great, without feeling that its boundaries
are a restraint. Switzerland, Holland and
Greece do not occupy much space on the map,
but they have written a wonderful history, and
when universal peace is assured the opportuni
ties for service enjoyed by small countries will
be still greater. What is said of Switzerland,
Holland and Greece can be said of many other
small nations. Greatness does not depend upon
area. This nation has no thought of,tu,rnff
its attention away from the real standards to the
fictitious ones set up by the jingoes. The pres
ident spoke for the United States when he de
clared in his Mobile speech that this nation
would never acquire another foot of territory
by conquest. ..
Our neighbors should not be disturbed by tne
prophecies of Rear-Admiral Peary; he has never
been anointed and he speaks only tor J811,
W. J. BRYAN.
IOWA'S NATIONAL COMMITTEEMAN
tvt t o ir . March 30, 1915.
Mr. L. S. Kennington,
Newton, Iowa,
My dear Mr. Kennington:
I am in receipt of your favor of March 24th
enclosing a report of the meeting of the demo
cratic central committee on March 2 2d, and say
ing that at the meeting a claim was made that I
desired the appointment of Mr. Marsh.
I do not assume that my opinion is desired,
but if the partisans of any candidate regard my
views as having any weight in the election of a
national committeeman, it is only fair that those
views should be frankly stated and made known
to all who have to act upon the subject.
The legislature of Iowa has voted statutory
prohibition, and has also submitted to the people
a prohibition amendment to the constitution. It
becomes necessary, therefore, for the voters of
Iowa to act upon the liquor question, both in
choosing another legislature and in voting upon
the amendment submitted. The democrats of
Iowa, constituting a considerable portion of the
voting population, must take action upon this
subject both in tlie nomination and election of
legislators, and also directly as they vote upon
the prohibition amendment.
I take it for granted that the democratic party
will act upon the subject in its state and local
conventions, and even if it does not, the individ
ual action taken by the members of the organ
ization will, to a greater or less extent, commit
the party on this subject and thus affect the
party's strength in the state.
It is proper that the national committeeman
should represent the attitude of the party on
this question; in fact the liquor interests have
already ruled out one good man because he is
"dry." The only way in which the sentiment of
the party can bo made evident in advance of a
convention or an election is for each person to
vote as he thinks, if he acts as an individual or,
as his constituents think, if he acts as a repre
sentative. The liquor question Is a moral question and
our party's hope of success in the state of Iowa
for years to come will, in my judgment, depend
upon the manner in which it meets this question
and the position it takes upon it.
If I were a citizen of Iowa I would make my
opinion on the subject manifest by casting what
ever influence I had in favor of the selection of
officials who would not be controlled by, or
under obligation to, the liquor interests but
would be positively and definitely committed to
the homo as against the saloon. The brewer,
the distiller, and the saloonkeeper are in con
spiracy against all that is pure in society, against
all that is sacred in the family against all that
is good in industry and desirable in government.
I do not mean to say that EVERY brewer,
EVERY distiller, or EVERY saloonkeeper is con
sciously conspiring, but the business in which
these men are engaged is the enemy of progress
and civilization and they are not in position to
oppose the Influences that dominate it. Those
who represent the liquor interests are conscience
less in their methods; they debauch the individ
uals through whom they act, and any party to
which they dictate. The democratic party can
only hope for success when it gives expression
to high ideals and makes Itself the champion of
the noblest principles and the best policies.
Whenever a moral question is raised, there
fore, there Is but one side to it, unless the party
is willing to sell ils soul for a support which can
not be more than temporary, and which can not
be accepted even temporarily without the for
feiture of public respect.
It does not matter much what particular In
dividual is chosen as national committeeman, but
it matters a great deal whether he stands" on the
moral side or immoral side of the line that sep
arates the forces that are soon to engage in po
litical battle in Iowa. It would be far better
to take an obscure man who Is right on the liquor
question than a well-known man who is wrong
on the liquor question, for an unknown man
ceases to be unknown when he becomes the ex
ponent of a righteous cause, he borrows
strength from his cause; whereas, Individual
strength and personal influence dwindle Into
nothingness under the blight of an unholy al
liance with an immoral cause.
If, therefore, anybody asks you my opinion,
you may say that in any contest between a "wet"
and a "dry" candidate for national committee
man I am for the dry candidate, and that I shall
be greatly disappointed if the democratic party
In Town r1nrn Tint ihmw 1ir wttht nf ltd rrrt
influence against tho liquor interests add all that '"
tney stand ror or ucslrc.
Yours vory truly, '' '
W. J, BRYAN.
THE CONQUESTS OP PEACE
There Is nothing good or glorious which war
has brought forth in human naturo which peace
may not produce moro richly nnd more perma
nently. When wo ceaso to think of peaco as the
negatlvo of war, and think of war as tho neg
ative of peace, making war and not peace the
exception and Interruption of human life, making:
peace and not war tho typo nnd glory of exist
ence, then shall shine forth tho higher soldier
ship of the higher battles. Then tho first mil
itary spirit and its work shall seem to bo but
crude struggles after, and rehearsals for, that
higher fight, the fight after the eternal facts and
their obedience, the light against the perpetual
ly intrusive lie, which is the richer glory of the
riper man. Tho facts of government, the facts
of commerce, tho facts of society tho facto of
history, tho facts of man, tho facts of God, in
these, in the perception of their glory, in the
obedience to their compulsion, shall be tho pos
sibility and promise of the soldier statesman,
the soldier scientist, tho soldier philanthropist,
the soldier priest, tho soldier man. "Tho sword
is beaten into tho plowshare, the spear into the
pruning hook." "Tho war drum throbs no
longer, and the battle flags are furled." But it
is not that the power of flght has perlBhed; It Is
that tho battlo has gone up onto hlghor ground
and Into higher light. The battlo is above the
clouds. Phillips Brooks.
Charles Francis Adams, who died at a rips
old age the other week, contributed one famous
comment on tho Dlngley tariff that Is readily re
membered. He was a manufacturer, and said
of that tariff: "I stole under It yesterday; I am
stealing under It today, and I propose to steal
under It tomorrow. Tho government has forced
me into the position, and I both do and shall take
full advantage of it." Nearly all of his fellow
manufacturers did tho same, but none of them
was as frank and truthful about it as he was.
About a third of a billion was lost in tho man
ipulations which brought tho Rock Island rail
road, fundamentally a strong western railroad,
into financial difficulties. The attorneys for the
men who did tho manipulating carefully explain
ed to the investigators that it was "merely a mis
take of judgment." A little later it was also dis
covered that they confined their mistakes In
judgment to their dealings with other persons'
money and not their own.
Pnlnnnl "PnnHnvnH ih nf 111 diRriinrf?Incr inn crrrat 3
guns of his rhetoric against the Wilson adminis
tration battlements, but no breaches In the walls
have yet been made. The colonel's attack licks
one important element in successful warfare,
that of surprise.
ENDORSED BY COUNTY CHAIRMAN
We were greatly pleased this week to receive
from Hon. A. C. Hindman, chairman of the Ada
County Democratic Central Committee official
endorsement of Commoner Week, the movement
Inaugurated by Tho New Freedom to greatly
increase the circulation of The Commoner W.
J. Bryan's great national review of current prob
lems. The democracy of the nation should set
aside the week beginning with Monday, March
15th, as Commoner Week and remember the
great work which Mr. Bryan has accomplished in
tho past by greatly enlarging his field of effort
by increasing the circulation of The Commoner.
Wo append herewith Mr. Hindman's letter and
sincerely trust that every democrat In Ada
county will respond by a subscription to The
Commoner. Mr. Hindman writes as follows:
Boise, Idaho, Feb. 26, 1915.
Hon. Fred Floed, Editor Tho New Freedon,
Boise, Idaho. Dear Sir: I have noted with in
terest the move inaugurated by The New Free
dom to observe the week of March 15th as Com
moner Week, and desire to give my heartiest ap
proval to the plan and its object, viz: increasing
the circulation of William J. Bryan's great pa
per, The Commoner. Nothing will do so much
to promote the Interests of the national demoo
racy, and make it a militant, successful organize
tlon as the general circulation of a newspaper
which teaches the doctrine of true democracy.
Very respectfully yours, A. C. Hindman, Chair
man Democratic County Central. Committee oC
Ada County. The New Freedom, Boise, Idaho.
J"
BbE
h! .'.ilCiilki j-i-iC.
a jSg.i&jEJ&u.
ui& VoTu
