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The Commoner
VOL22, NO. 11
"
governor, and Mr. Bryan, his opponent, together
-with some editorials from leading Democratic
papers of the state. '
Senator Hitchcock's telegram follows:
Omaha, Nebr., Nov. 8, 192.2.
Hoii' Charles -W. Bryan,
Lincoln, Nob.
Accept my congratulations and best wishes
for your administration. My own defeat is a
surpr'se but not much of -a disappointment. Lot
me assure you of my appreciation for the loyal
and whole hearted support wlfich you and W.
J. gave me. , G. M. HITCHCOCK.
M.r. Bryan wired. this reply:
Lincoln, Neb., Nov. 8, 1022.
Senator G. M. Hitchcock,
Omaha, Nob,
My dear Senator: The lack of the necessary
votes to re-elect you has been a great surprise
to mo and deeply distresses me. You made a
wonderful campaign for the entire ticket and
party, and but for most unusual conditions, you
would have beon re-elected. Your leadersh'p
and advice of yoursolf andour splendid paper
Will bo of gredt service to the Democrats and
common people of this state, and I want you to
feel that I will need and will sincerely ap
preciate your fullest cooperation during the
trying two-year period through which I will
pass as chief -executive of Nebraska. Your con
gratulations and best'W'shes over my election
and for my administration are very gratifying,
.yet Eho loss of the senator, the legislature and
ittost of the state ticket depresses mo.
;'", ,. . CHARLES W. BRYAN.
Stajte Senator Charles H. Randall, the. Re
pubjicaiii. candidate for govornor. sent sthis tele
.gra.of congratulation 4o Mr. Bryan:
' Randolph, Neb., Nov. 8, 1922
Hoii1. 'Chas. W. Bryan, ' '-
Linjtflq, Neb.
'' "Returns now in assure your election by a
largo majority. Please accept my. sincere con
grfitulat'ons. You will have a wonderful op
portunity to serve the people of our state at a
tinte'-'when calm, conservative, level-headed
Wusiriess judgment will in my opinion be the
pHm'tf requisite of "a successful administrat'on.
, ' CHARLES H. RANDALL,
..This is Mr. Bryan's reply:
1 v Lincoln, Neb., "Nov. 8, 1922.
Charles H. Randall,
Randolph, Neb. .
Your telegram of congratulations upon my
election as governor is most kind and generous
of you, and I deeply appreciate the expressions
of good jvyHl therein. The conditions n the state,
will, as you say, require jevel headed business
judgment in the chief executive office, and I will
appreciate any suggestions during my incum
bency that may occur to you that will advance
the interests of tho people of Nebraska!
CHARLES W."BRYAN.
MR.' BRYAN'S -COMMENT OITtHE ELECTION
- Charles W. Bryan" in commenting upon the
election, said:
"The result of the Nebraska election on gov
ernor is most gratifying. However, it indicates
the intense feeling of the people over tin doub
ling of the expense to the taxpayers in handling
the administrative affairs of the state and of
duplicating state officers and employes as has
been done under the code system.
"Transferring the authority out of the hands
of the people's ow;i constitutional officers into
the handJ of the governor, who in turn under
the code law transferred authority into
the hands of countless employes out of reach of
tho poople who are supposed to be supreme, has
been rebuked in no uncertain tones, and I am
not vain enough to feel that the result of the
election on governor was intended. as a personal
compliment to niyself.
J "While tfio elecfon of a governor of one po
litical party and a majority of the legislature
and a majority of the state officers of another
political party might be compared to civine- a
man- a new automobile of one make and then
supplying him with vital parts of it from another
factory that might not adjust themselves as
quickly and operate as smoothly as a complete
now car oLane bu'ld with all parts functioning
smoothly from the state, yet I feel that the de
sires and heeds of the people throughout Nebras
ka at this time are such that they have solflct
for the executive, admlntatratlTo and?oStatS2
branches of the government, representative! who
canand will work in harmony to g tho JEE
pie not only the relief that they need from op
pressive taxation, but who will restore the form
of government that recognizes the American
theory of government that authority which
officials have comes up from below and is not
dictated from the top as it is under kings.
"I take this opportunity to express my -sincere
appreciation of the splend'd support which I
receivod during the. campaign and at the bal
lot box." -
NEBRASKA'S NEXT G6VERNOR
Qharles W. Bryan, the Democratic nominee
for governor of Nebraska, made a clean , fight
that was open and above-aboard, and won a w.qjl
deserved and gratifying victory.
That a Democratic legislature and a full set p'f
Democratic state officials were not elected with
him is disappointing to Democrats, but it is a re
sult in no way chargeable to Mr. Bryan, who
gave loyal and whole-hearted support to the en
tire ticket, both state and national, and whose
desire was part'cularly keen for a legislature
and state administration to support him in mak
ing possible the reforms to which he stands
pledged. That Mr Bryan waselected, and most
of the rest of the ticket is at this writing appar
ently defeated, is due to the overwhelming Re
publican complexion of the state, which over
stepped paTty lines to elect Mr. Bryan only be
cause of intense resentment against the policies
of tho state administration of the last four years.
Tho WorldJterald sincerely congratulates
Charles W. Bryan on his splendid victory. If as"
now seems probable, the legislature is to -be
aain in Republican hands, this newspaper .is
entirely corifldent that Governor Bryan will not,
on that account, mitigate his efforts for a repeal
of the code law and for a rewriting of the reve
nue and taxation laws of tho state. His' own
election makes unmistakable the public attitude
toward these measures, aha" also the desire for a
return to a simple and frugal admin'sfration of
the state government. The legislature, whatever
its partisan control, if it is wiseand ready truly
to represent the people, will fail into line for
the measure of 'reform the people have de
manded. Our cordial best wishes to the governor-elect,
and for an administration that will be creditable
to h'mself'and to his party because of it's useful
services to the state. Omaha World-Herald. '
TREND TOWARD INDEPENDENT VOTING
In the' state election last Tuesday the -voters
of Nebraska showed the utmost indifference to
the old time slogan of "Vote the ticket
straight."- They dfd more scratching than ever
before, arid the outcome is about as mixed as it
ever has been in this state. The election was
decided, not by the narrow gauge voters who
put their cross in a party circle, but by those
who started at the top of the list and picked
their candidates for each office as they went
down.
Public attention was concentrated mainly
upon two offices United States senator and gov
ernor. And for those offices, tlio candidate of
one party for senator is elected by about 75
000 plurality, while for governor the candidate
of the opposing narty wins by mdre than 50,
000. This showfTa total spread of 125,000 Votes
measuring the extent to which party lines were
crossed by the people in marking their tickets.
Had party names possessed their old potency
and had tho political managers been able to
rally their followers as they used to do, by ap
pealing to party spirit, no such thing would have
been possible. Thoro is, unquestionably, a
strong tendency in these days to discriminate
between candidates onthe basis of what they
stand for, rather than what party designation
they happen to bear.
Nevertheless, it cannot be? said that party
lines have been wiped 'out. Nebraska is still
normally a Republican state. It elects a Re
publican Un'ted States senator, most of the Re
publican state ticket, and a Republican legisla
ture. The .simultaneous election of a Demo
cratic governor, three Democratic congressmen
and a Democratic secretary of state signifies
merely that enough Republican voters scratched
their tickets to accomplish these results.
C. W, Bryan's election as governor, ' under
tho circumstances, is a remarkable tr'bute to
the indepedence of Nebraska voters. Although
Harding carried the state two years ago by 130 -000,
and although the avomge Republican ma
jority on other state candidates this year is 30 -000
to 40,000, the same voters rolled up a 5o!
000 majority for Bryan.
The people have shown that they wilbrallv
behind a man jvho has tbequalities of leader
ship and fights aggressively for the things in
wh'ch they believe. Nebraska taxpayers needed
a champion to take up the fight, in their be
half Tor relief from the crushing burdens laid
upon them to maintain a bureaucratic state gov
ernment. When ho appeared, they threw party
alignments to tho winds and gavo him their
support. .
It is Tho Star's opinion, that the people of Ne
braska will 'never again permit party pol'ticians
to lino them, up by the cry of '''Vote the Ticket
straight." In-the future, wo are 'likely to see
more of the same kind- of independent voting
that was so strongly" in ovidfnee last Tuesday.
And the more of itsthat is done tho better gov
ernment the state will have.-Lincoln Star.
INDEPENDENT VOTING
The one outstanding feature in the recent
election which should afford much food for
thought to machine politicians and big business
interests of the state was the vast amount of in
dependent voting on all sides and jn every sec
tion of the state- While the. Democrats made
wpndorful gains over two -years ago and showed
a" united, harmonious front neither party can
claim any special victory. Mr. Howell was
elected senator, not so much because he is a Re
publican, but-, more because of. his progressive
ism. Prom 75,000 plurality tor Howell the vot
ers switch over to a Democrat for governor and
gave Mr. Bryan more than 50(000 plurality. Here
again progressiveism puts in . and cuts a great
figure, Mr. Bryan's opponent beingclassed as
highly conservative. The same situation pre
vailed in the congressional contests and to a
great extent in the legislature. . While a goodly
majority in both Houses are registered as Re
publicans, .they are progressives first and Re
publicans only as it was the most politic for
them to, go into the race. The state campaign
was fought out on the issues of anti-code, anti
revenue law-and. reductioriof taxes. Mr. Bryan
niade his fight-and achieved success on these is
sues many, if not all the legislators since Mr.
Bryan! carr'ed nearly every county in the state
were elected on "the same platform and the peo
ple of the state are looking to .the executive and
the legislature to carry out their pledges, "with
out the aid or consent" of any special interests,
big business newspapers or machine politicians
on earth. These be serious times and these are
serious problems. Tho Herald' feels perfectly
safe in speaking for Mr. Bryan, that he will
make good, so far as he is permitted to do so.
If the legislature makes as good as Governor
Bryan will the people of the - state, will liavo
cause for heartfelt rejoicing, when the record is
made up. Lincoln Herald. "
GOVERNOR-ELECT BRYAN HONORED BY
' """"" HOME FOLKS
(Prom Lincoln Star, Nov. 10.)
About eight hundred people; attended a
"homo- folks" reception for Governor-elect
Charles W. Bryan held at his home. Sterling
-Mutz,- chairman of the Democratic county cen
tral committee, president, Mrs. C. S. Clayton,
Mrs. T. J. Doyle and E. G. Maggi gave short
talks, George E. Hall introduced Mr. Mutz. The
people attending the reception met at the Lin
coln hotel and proceeded to the Bryan home, led
by the American Legion band. '
Mr. Mutz said that Governor' Samuel McKelvie
stated two years ago that tho Democratic party
was fast becoming extinct in 'Nebraska. No one,
said Mr. Mutzhad dotte more to propagate the
Democratic party, than Mr. McKelvie, with the
possible exception of Gus Hyers.
Mr." Maggi said that while he had always
been a Republican he had voted for Mr. Bryan,
because of what he stood for. He said that he
had known Mr. Bryan for twenty-five years, and
that he believed ."that two years from now
Charles W. Bryan would be elected United States
senator by a bigger majority than he had re
ceived for governor. The people, he said, would
now be supreme in Nebraska, while for the past
four years "the state has been ruled by a bunch
of cheap politicians." .
A letter from C. A. Lord, who was to have
been chairman of tho meeting but Who could
not be present, was read. "Burn his house if yu
want to, he and his wife are not too proud to live
in the house the state bought for its governor
and his family," the letter concluded.
At Eleventh and P street, 150 men under the
leadership of E. L. Brother of Havolock and
"Buck" Hawkins of Lincoln, joined !u with a
banner bearing the motto: "Home Folks Go-
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parade proceeded, stragglers joined in. A long
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