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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1916)
"'"T,rt'T'T'' "rTffFTnpffffg The Commoner vol. igno.;.!, 2, -,-.!. ' - Wf - rT- -J- - P-, . f .4 L-K Y- '.. r . 4 H r such a way as to mennco thp nation's peace. It Is time to consider duty to country and to fol low citizens. And, since nomo arc either too blind or too unpatriotic to do this, it Is the duty of congrcHH to act, and to act at once, before new complications arise. Does It Impair a mayor's right or power to suppress a mob, if ho keeps citizens off the street while he docs so? No more would It Impair the President's right or power to deal with pending problems, If congress pre vents now complications. 'iMio captain of a belligerent vessel may at any momont POIIFK1T Til 10 LIVES OF THE PAS SENGERS by trying to escape, or by making re sistance. Why should American citizens be per mitted to take such risks, when they risk their nation's poaco as well as their own lives? This nation is not seeking a cause of war; then, why pormit a few citizens to supply material for scn satldnnl papers? BELLIGERENT SHIPS SHOULD BE DENIED CLEARANCE OH. ENTRY IF THEY CARRY AMERICAN PASSENGERS that will keep this country out of any controversy that may be hereafter raised by submarine warfare. But to make-certainty doubly sure, clearance and' entry should-bo denied to the passenger ships of neu tral countries Including our own if they CARRY CONTRABAND WITH PASSENGERS. Pasongera are entitled to the entire attention of the' ship's ofllcors at a time like this1 the thoughts of the. oflcers Bhonld not bo diverted l'ronV'diro of passengers to cafe of a contraband cargd ' '-. ' Gdrigross should act at once. v :( i Wi J. BRYAN. iX' i xu i ';; fey Want War Now Jttifr ridyogates of extreme preparedness reajly wujjt, this country to Ontor into .the presbut yr WW'on for a fut,uro ,war is a secondary consideration. Former Ambassador, Choato,..wbQ is forging to tho front as one of 'the leading jingoes, said at a- recent public meeting: "The Unitpdtf States may be in the, .midM of war any,, minjuto,. and if this country does -not outer tho warvW.o want to, do all wo. can to help ourMieigli- bor (meaning Canada)? Tis country can not bo neutral and unneutral ut.jthPmmq tImo-. M is to, bo, no,utralk it.oan, not ujjdor.tak.o to, help. one aide against the .other TO11.,"10 b1(1 r n nelhbor no matter 'how friendly our relations wlth'tat neighbor may bo. ,r , ft' yqu will scratch through the Yonoer you will find thai tho pooplo who ao shouting most loud ly for preparedness against possible future war aroy'ln fact, anxious to drag this' country into th'o nresont'War, and make it ono Of Iho belligerents. Thoro' Is tho moro reason why the masses, hoii ostly desiring neutrality, should steadfastly op poso the schemes of those who have been In fected1 'With tho war virus. '' ": W. J. BRYAN. , '. , THE MILLIONAIRE DINNER The millionaire dinner given to ex-President Roosevelt (see account on another page) has made moro certain his return to the republican ' party,. Ormsby Mel-Iarg, who was one of his lioutonants in 1012, says that Mr. Roosevelt will announce his candidacy by March 1st, but it will not bo necessary to nominate him in order to secure his support He is tired of tho byways and hedges, and wants to see the bright lights again. Ho Is not likely to bo squeamish about candidato or platform. Raise the Money First Where Is the money coming from with which to pay for preparedness? This should be de cided before the appropriation is made. If the reader will consult the New Testament, he will find very high authority for counting tho cost llrst: "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first and counteth the cost, whether he have sufllcient to finish it? Lest haply after he hath laid the foundation, and IS not able to finish it, all that behold him begin to mock him." Will not the republicans mock us if wo plan expenditures on a large scale, without first mak ing sure of the money necessary to meet these expenditures? We adopt this precaution in other matters, why should we make an excep tion of this particular kind of expenditure? And would it not deliver us into the hands of the republicans to create the NECESSITY for additional revenue without first providing for the raising of the revenue needed? Would they not be In position to dictate terms? And would they not be likely to take advantage of the op portunity to demand a return to a protective tariff? They are loudly proclaiming that our revenue law is a failure, and predicting a restor ation of the former schedules on imports. Could they reslBt the temptation to make the accept ance of protection a condition precedent to their support? Tho democrats should avoid this trap. If congress wants to enter upon the extravagant' military and naval program demanded by the munition shylocks, the professional man-killers and tho jingoes, let it have tho courage to de cide first from what part of 'the body politic the blood Is to be taken. ' W. J. BRYAN.' MIL MAXIM'S VIEWPOINT ' Tfc . On another page will.be found a. letter; written by Mr. Hudson Maxim and published (very ap propriately) in the New York Sun of Nov. 9th, 1915. If the reader will compare the date of the Sun letter with the date of Mr. Maxim's, trip to St. Louis he will find that he issued his tirade against Mr. Bryan AFTER Mr. Bryan had attacked the preparedness which Mr. Maxim is urging and BEFORE the St. Louis Republic ex posed tho intimate pecuniary relations existing between Mr. Maxim's fight for preparedness and ( his business interests. Mr. Bryan is? opposing the special interests which are seeking to fasten,, themselves upon the taxpayers, and he not only expects, but welcomes the. attacks of the .would be tax-eaters. It shows that his shots have hit the mark. . . NAVAL EXPERTS, TOO The press dispatches say that the Naval board want to make our navy the biggest in the world, anil to this end insist on spending 500 millions the first year. The Naval board is a class rival of the Army board when it comes to spending the people's money "two of a kind." If the reader will substitute naval experts. for army experts in the editorial comparing the;-t Army board's demands with the net income of tho farmers of the country, it will be seen that' these two boards would, if they had their 'way,-: bankrupt the country. By the time they-gotti through preparing there would be nothing' to defend. .-!.... ' I'J.i'. THE l?J3W VS. THE . Tweuty-six millions of war material exported in October,' and one of the fngo papers predicts that the. export Of niuhitious during the next six mtiriths Will be greater than during the past six month's.'' My! What a great time the manufac turers' of war malorial art having! No wonder they dread to see the war "brought to 'ah end. How absurd to talk about peace when war is so profitable TO SOME! L But, what about the people who make no money out 'of "the European war, and have' no prospect of profit In any war this country might have? Are they likely to share in the war eii-' thus'lasm which the manufacturers of munitions' are trying to work up in this country? Working Up ScaresS On, another pago will be found a speech deliv- ered in the British House of Commons, 'on the' 18th of March, 1914, by Mr., Philip Snowdem It is a remarkably frank exposure of the' cottrtec-fc tion .between government officials and the manuJ f acturers of munitions. . It also., dhows' sdiowvs patriotism -is- turned tomerceniiry.uses; fi.-The rt Krupp investigation in . Germanyivtrevealed-he: pecuniary. influences, at, work, in:that'country;;on? the. side 4q. preparedness. ) f,-. .., .;.. ,-,x,ijfo These echoes from the. old world, taken -in K' connection with the .activity of our. own traffic v ers in -war material, show that the conspiracy '" which we have to meet is international in ex tent, and has for its object the cultivation oMhew war spirit for the pecuniary; advantage-it brings TO i linen wllr. niW!...( 11 mi. . . .... . .-v., ,... uuuivaie il. lueir patriotism is but -'a'shani ami n. rrAtpnc3o-: ' v'.w. j: bryan:'-'" i A FOREIGN VIEW ' v A GOOD EXAMPLE The North Side Democratic club of Pittsburgh sets the democratic clubs of the country a good example in condemning the policy of prepared ness. Every democratic club should do like wise. The President has heard from the metro politan press, which NEVER takes the people's side, and he has heard from the munition man ufacturers now let him hear from the demo cratic workers. j,-V id to- m rt.TOPM The London Times thus 'speaks of the iresi--'. de.nts sudden break with the past of his own., party , v . . "Even mnrp afriVino- i,,, i. -n .,. .. ' :!' '' nunclat.on of the German campaign is the new,. S S? il- aSSUm,e,s on the subiect PI national 7 2 V 'LY1. bw.U" the past othto-7 ?S not" expVot'. hi s proposals to l : carrfed InhnT TVJe mak6S "or?"!, noft w.' , J Tho New York Herald has wanted war all the time, and each day it advances' some new rea son lor beginning the fight at once. This shows how dangerous it is to trust to the leadership of non-residents iii national matters. . "Ityoli don't I'll "- la this the language of friendly neighbors, trying to -adjust a difference?- No, it is the language of- diplbmacy among Christian nations, endeavoring to reach amicablo settlement of a dispute. If Solomon were writing today ho would in clude tho Navy board, the Army experts and tho munitions manufacturers among those who say not "It 1s enough." ( Jvv .. Th."e preparers of preparedness" have more daughtprs than the horse leach, and thev are uu U1J"B gjvu.; .,!.-, 00 ' . PREPARATION! STS ARE MILITARISTS One- of the members of the Naval nnnauu'Jl board has resigned in order that L inay "bel free to attack the thoroughly inadennat ?SV tho President," and yet noim nf n, have felt called wXe3&;. of such an official -at this time as an acTou S,'' son to the government. Ct of tra-; ' (? ' now Ono thing, is certain, the man ,who talks peace w is an enemyto those who proflt by war' - . : "Pan-Americanism ugh'tnotHo-le;hs;expensivo as tho. Monroe Doctrine, When the present agitation for pre paredness began, tho preparationists dis claimed favoring' militarism. "Adequate defense," they said, was all they wanted Today the mask hais been dropped. Uni versal conmtflsory military service is their demand. Nothing more extreme, ill lllilitnilism 1c ircolll im.n "preparattonist" and "militarist" have rr w 'v "".j iuuiu-1. uuui iiust'nne an advocate of practically the same military system for United States as prevails iii Germany, France, Raly and Russia. The fi public, Chicago. '() ' 0 ??v"eS-S; bread more a i t 71' ? aowance. of if you bear in m Vw'n"1 IPnwanosa.leas crop of the. United States tUe Whe:l:t. i t pa -3p Ex-President Roosevelt is claiming thVr w '"-! !' aredness" is a child of hi hri lT , pfd" $ & g by the reaemblZp0 i.i,8AP.aJn; d' 1":- ' i. uv n,Q . :;:::. u iiia uiui- ,"T.; ;' , , ',coommilllce- e is right. Tho p,. , . '' S, ' REPUBLICAN HAKMOXV On another page in parallel, columns 'whihP. found two news items which' appeared tHi$2r m. 1ie,nior,ning papers of Jaiiua?y ?f tT Thfvfi lustyato .the -harmony upon wJilcli uS ien&llcan? are relying. for success. . .... . ePHPpans; . i." Ik i i' i 1 T I J ' ll I h X -fa ! & rr. m n 1,1 liRhni i wS r. ? r:7: . ,.-MiMMiAAAk4 ?4J&j