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The Commoner
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TOL; 22, NO. 11
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lhe Commoner
ISSUED MONTHIiY
Progress Versus
.--
Cons
ervatism
Entered af the Postofllco at Lincoln, Nobraska,
aa Bccond-clasa matter.
WILLTAM J. BRYAN,, CHARLES W. BRYAN,
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i . THK fiOMMONEIl, LIN,COI,N; NED.
T , , i ,
. STATEMENT OF THE OWNERSHIP. MANAGE
MENT, ETC., REQrUIllED BY THE ACT OF
. CONGRESS OF AUGUST 24, 1012
of The Commoner; published monthly at Lincoln,
Nebraska, .for October 1, 1922. K. ,
Statb of Nebraska )H ,- '-
County of Lancaster )
Bcforo me, a notary public in and for the state
aHd county aforesaid,, personalis' appeared Chas..SV.
Bryan, who, having been duly sworn according to
law, i deposes and says that he Is the publisher of
Tho Commoner, and that the following Is, to the
best of his knowledge and belief, a true statement
of thooWnershlp, management, etc,, of the aforesaid
publication for tho dato slfown in the abovo -caption,
required by tho Act of August 2Jf 1912. ombodiedin
sectibn 443, postal -laws and regulations, to'wlt:
1. That the names and. addresses of the pub
lisher, editor, associate editor, arid business man
agers -are r "
Publisher: Chart cs JV. SBryan . . . .Lincoln, Nebraska
Editor: "William Jennings Bryan .Lincoln, Nebraska
Associate, Editor: Charles W. Bryan. .Lincoln, Nebr.
Business Managers: None. tl
2. That tho owner Is: W ill lam Jennings Bryan,
Lincoln, Nebraska. -
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other security holders holding 1 per cent or more.
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.CHAS. W. BRYAN, Publisher.
Sworn to and subscribed, before mo-thls 20th. "dayi
of September , 1922. " s
' J. R. FARRIS, Notary' Public "
(My comriiisslori expires July 19, 1924.)
. -
kIt'will be rattier difficult to convine'anumber
of esteemed Republicans tnatvijo far as this elec
tion is concerned there is enough glory to go
Tound. '
The gpiijion exists in some quarters that if
Somer arrangement could be' made with respect
to clothes with the football players and the
, bathing beauties there might be a much better
equalization of attire accomplished.
The railway labor board says that it does not
belieye there is anything such a thing as a liv
ing wage; and has declined to fix One for em
ployes of the transportation company. In view
of the fact that a living wage is very plainly"V
wage large enough for the person who receives
it really live upon, tho question does not appear
so difficult to answer. -
-w
As President Harding looks over the political
'news covering ovents that happened' on tho 7th
of November ho will be able to 'understand how
the sultan of Turkey, who has just lost h!s job
-because the people didn't like the way he ran
Yhtngs, feels just now, oven though the presi
dent is still on familiar terms with tho man who
pay3 salaries in this country.
Not tho least enjoyable of the chuckles that a
Democrat gets from reading the olectlon re
turns is in noticing that the election of Smith
W. Brookhart as senator in Iowa is listed as a
Republicaji victory Anybody who knows how
the Republican leaders of that state feel about
BrOokhart's election can readily get the point.
Mr. Brookhart was elected because the corpora
tloii and reactionary Republicans of that sta
said' that he was too close to the people Jta
was a good year for candidates' who had proved
thitcffly wero closo t0 tho people " P
(By W. J. BRYAN)
Many of the visitors to Japan carry homo
with them a pair of Korean 120ns. It seerris
almost farcical to' call them lions because they
havo nothing of trie fierceness of the menagerie
lions--being1 comical rather than fear inspiring.
They are to be found at the doors of temples--ond
on brie side, and one on tho other. One of
the lions has its mouth open wh'ilo tho other
has its mouth firmly closed; they ' are" said to
represent the eternal conflict between the posi
tivo and tho negative between the progressive
and the conservative. Both of these groups are
necessary; if it were not for tho conservative
the progressive would go too fasT if it were not
for the progressive the conservative would not
go at all. 4
This is the. fundamental conflict that is being
fought out everywhere. In traveling around the
world i inquired, upon entering a now country,
what political issue was paramount tljere, and
found that everywhere the most vital issue was
between those who wanted to go forward, and
those who contended for existing methods and
conditions. No two countries stand upon rthe
same level in the matter of progress; that which
is progressive in One country, is-conservative in
another, the line being drawn between that
desired and that secured.
The line does riot always separate the same,
people; the progressive in .one generation may
be the conservative in the next. Having won
the fight 'he beg'an In his youh, her may leaVe
others to lead the next fighU- 1 7 -
The conservative has several advantages over
the progressive. In the firsj; place, one is c'on-
. stitutionally inclined to prefer that with which
he ia acquainted' to that whicbris new;, fgnor
ance, therefore, is 6n the-side of conservatism.
One must; . understand a proposition (at leaslt he
must thirik ho understands it) before lie will
-.endorse it. The progressives iriust rely for
'their numbers and strength upon those suf
ficiently well informed to prefer a proposed re
form to existing laws. The conservatives, .on
the contrary, include, not only those who have"
studied the subject and decided aga'nst ttra re
form, but also those who have nojt studied the
uninformed.,. Our governmental machinery gives
the conservatives a very decided advantage
over the progressives. "We havo in the nation,
-"and in tjach of the- states, an Executive"1 and a
Legislature; these must unite in tho enactment'
of a law. ' ' " ,
The progressive is handicapped still further
by tho fact that, each legislature has ' two
branches, which must concur in tho passage of
-a law before it goes' to. the Executive," for. his
signature. In other words, a measure in the
line of progress must pass BOTH Houses and
receive the approval of the President, while tho
conservative can block the measure by control
ing either House or the Executive. In 'the na
fnal government, and in most of the states, the
veto of the Executive cahnqt' -be overridden ex
cepting by a two-thirds majority of both Houses
In the matter of Constitutional amendments,'
the handicap of the progressive is made heavier
by the fact that two-thirds of both Houses must
submit the amendment? and then three-fourths
of the states must ratify it. Ratification re
quires the concurrence of two Houses seventy
two in thirty-six states, while ratification can be
; defeated by thirteen Ho;uses in thirteen states
There are strong arguments in favjar of suf
ficient enforced delay to compel deliberation
Changes should not be made under tho spur of
excitement, but there1 is no reason why any ob
stacle should be put in the .way of the triumph
.? w111 of the PePle when there has been
sufficient time and opportunity for mature con
sideration of the proposed change.
It is worth while to note also that all reforms
disturb so-called "vested rights," although it
would sometimes be more accurate "to describe
them as "vested wrongs." Reforms begin with
those who SUPPER and are always oppose? by
those who profit by the abuses to bo reformed
Those who make money out of an abuse not
only have tho sinews of war with which to fteht
reform, but they fight with desperation and re
gardless of expense. They are able to organize
those who are directly menaced, or fear a future
attack The contest is usually between the un
organized victims of Injustice and those on the
other side who are protected in the doing of in
justice by some outgrown law or some anti
quated method of government.
I hav taken tho trouble to call attention to
the" governmental handicaps placed upon those
who seek to inaugurate changes in order that
the' reader ..may "understand why reforms grow
so slowly. . ,"
The progressive sentiment in this country is
overwhelming but it takes v time for it to find
expression. Ttte progressive sentiment not only
oontrols the nation, but it in, time controls all
parties. It is so difficult to amend, our Federal
Constitution that-constitutional changes are im
possible without joint action by the great par
ties. Within the last twelve years, four consti
tutional amendments have been adopted.
.Neither the Democratic party nor ;he Republi
can party was strong enough to secure a consti
tutional change wittfout tho aid of the opposite
party; and it is a fact worthy of notice that
- separate action 3s not usually, necessary when
an independent reform is ripe, for triumph. The
discussion necessary to secure two-thirds of
both Houses, and three-fourths of the states
unites the progressives' regar'dless of party.
Take, for instance, the four constitutional re
forms tsecured in the last twelve years. It re
quired twenty-one years of agitation to secure
the direct election of United States senators;
thb first resolution proposing the amendment
passed1 the National Hotfse of Representatives in
1892, while the ratification was not completed
until 1913. It passed the House six times before
it. could pass theHSenate once. When it did
finally pass, the House was Democratic and the
Senato Republican..' It was quickly ratified
Republican and Democratic states vieing with
5ach pytier in "Supporting it.
It required saventeen years of agitation to se
cure the income- - tax; when jt was finally se
cured, it was by the cooperation of the Demo
crats and the Republicans the two parties
- sharing in the glory of the victory.
Arid" -so' with prohibition; " While a Demo-&
cratic congress submitted . the proh bition
amendment, a Republican congress passed tho
Volstead law whfch put- the amendment into ef
fect. More than two-thirds of both the Demo
crats and Republicans in the Senate and the
House supported the 18th amendment, and all
the legislation enforcing the amendment.
A majority of the Democrats and Republicans
in both Houses voted for $fhe submission of the
Suffrage amendment, and-the two parties joined
in furnishing the Ihirty-six .'stalky -necessary for
ratifcation. '
While it is true thatVconstitutional reforms
required, cooperation between the two leading
- parties, it is only fair to the Democrats to say
.that they have IjED in thfe securing of every
important ec(momic reform of this generation.
That does not mean that all "Democrats are pro
gressive or that all' Republicans are conserva-tive-rbut
a larger percentage 'of the Demo
crats are progressive a larger percentage of
the Rep-ubllcans are conservative. This is a fact
that can be easjly proven.
Take tho two constitutional amendments, for
instance, which draw the line between -progressives
and conservatives. The -direct election of
senators made that body more responsive to the
will of the people. Agitation began among the
farmers and among the laborers. The opposi
tion was strongest where wealth was most con
centrated and most influential. The first House
that passed the resolution submitting the
amendment, was the Democratic' House elected
in 1S90. he resolution was also passed by tho
congress elected in 1892, which was also Demo
cratic. Then two Republican congresses ad
journed without passing the resolution. After
that, three Republican congresses passed the
resolution and then it was passed by a Demo
cratic congress at the time that the Senate con
curred. It will be seen, therefore, that while
three of the Houses were Democratic, and three
Republican, THE DEMOCRATS"" TOOK THE
INITIATIVE. Pour Democratic National plat
forms endorsed tho direct election of tho sena
tors by tho people. In this connection it is sig
nificant to note that no Republican platform
ever endorsed this amendment? in 1904, the
convention t that nominated Mr. Roosevelt re
jected, by avote of 7 to 1, and a resolution in
troduced, by Senator LaPollette, endorsing the
direct election of senators.
' Justice to the Republican masses requires that
J. should state -there was probably never a time
between tho proposal of this amendniont and its
adoption whon a -majority of Republican votorfl
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