r
:.l
I
Vol. XIV.
LINCOLN, NEB., NOV. 13, 1902.
No. 25.
A GOOD FIGHT
Oat
Fopalltt Stat Committer Gives
Closing Address
Omaha, Neb., Nov. 7, 1902. To the
Fusion Voters -of Nebraska: At the
opening of this campaign everything
was against us and" not even the most
sanguine of our party workers be
lieved we could win. But we went into
the fight hoping at least to cut down
the republican majority of two years
ago, which was made by imported
votes, free railroad transportation and
other republican methods.
We have been cramped for funds as
never before; this retarded the work
planned by this committee yery ma
terially. Our people seemed to be
"dead in the shell" politically. Many
party leaders said there was no use to
try.
Later in the campaign the situation
looked more encouraging. It became
evident that the fusion ticket would
make material gains in the cities and
towns where the people began to real
ize what it meant to their pocketbooks.
We believed the farmers would awake
to this fact also and that they would
go to the polls and vote. The early
returns verified our judgment and in
dicated a fusion victory so conclusive
that at 10 o'clock election night the
republican state committee conceded
the election of the fusion state ticket.
But when the returns began to come
in from the country districts it showed
a relative loss and this continued till
the battle was lost.
The returns do not indicate that the
fusion forces have lost any votes; the
republicans have made no gains. The
facts plainly stated are that 40,000 vot
ers did not vote and we have every evi
dence that at least 30,000 of these are
fusion voters.
We desire to say to the populist
voters of Nebraska that had Mr,
Thompson made one promise demand
ed of him by one of the ojowerfuX
corporations of this state, that ha
would have undoubtedly been elected,
But he was true to the people and
their interests and answered with an
emphatic NO. But the people have
been untrue to Mr. Thompson. This is
a ; deplorable condition, for it means
that ere long it will be impossible to
induce a good man, who is free from
corporation influence, to accept a nom
ination for any office of trust.
We can say as did one of the great
est leaders of old:
"We have fought a good fight; we
have finished our course; we have kept
the faith."
And we are ready to go at them
again with renewed vigor.
We desire to cordially thank the
many party workers who have loyal
ly supported our cause, both in the
contribution of money and otherwise,
rnd we desire to congratulate the boys
of Hall, Polk and Douglas counties,
Yours for a final triumph of right
over might, equality before the law and
good government.
B. R. B. WEBER,
J. R. FARRIS, Chairman
Secretary.
fsooditfcer ever haw donen'the'tayment rhlch, once under way, will not
THOMPSON'S THANKS
Fnslon Nominee for Governor Thanks His
Supporters In Cheering Tforda
To My Friends in Nebraska: I de
sire to say that every one of you has
my most cordial thanks for the splen
did and unfaltering support you gave
me in the campaign just closed. The
odds were great, considering the oppo
sition against us. But that made no
difference with your battle and the
way in which you talked and wrote
and worked for the state ticket. A de
feat so worthily contested by the peo
pie who are true to the ..elves and the
cause, true to the principles so vital
to the happines of our state and our
nation, is one of which we all may feel
proud.
And to the press of Nebraska let me
add that I recognize the uniform fair
ness with which I was treated through
out the state. Personally, I appreciate
the compliment of having been a
standard-bearer on the skirmish line
with you -all in the campaign of 1902,
and must sincerely thank you for your
kindly encouragement and your earn
est support. W. II. THOMPSON.
Despicable Methods
The Lincoln Daily Star (D. E.
Thompson's paper) of Saturday, No
vember 8, devotes over a column or
editorial denouncing the State Jour
nal's publication of what purported
to be fac similes of annual passes car
ried by W. H. Thompson. Of course
no person who is accustomed to do his
own thinking was deceived by the
Journal's forgeries. It was evident
that the originals had been made out
on purpose and issued to the State
Journal instead of to Thompson. The
Star seems to think that the railroads
had nothing to do with the matter, but
that it was all concocted and executed
by F. A. Harrison, Harry Lindsay and
the State Journal. The Independent be
lieves otherwise, and is satisfied that
the railroad managers lent their aid
to the dirty scheme. After a vain at
tempt to get Thompson to say he
would not enforce the fusion demand
for increased railroad assessment, the
Burlington was ready to help along
any dirty trick which might lose him
some votes. The Star says:
"Chairman Lindsay made a mistake
when he gave favor to such dirty
work as this. He made a mistake
when he left in the hands of unprin
cipled hangers-on at central commit
tee headquarters the planing of
'coups' that are so offensive as to be
thoroughly despised by all who like
to see fairness and cleanliness in poli
tics. He made a mistake when he took
the results of a 'tool's' underhand
methods, fathered them and sent them
over the state as committee 'thunder.'
"The preparation of this despicable
bit of political filth was the work of
one who shines when engaged in such
degrading pursuits; it was flaunted in
a paper which finds its level only
when indulging such . displays of its
real inwardness; it was given father
hood by a few politicians who are do
ing the republican party a greater in
jury in practices of this kind than the
they are supposed to have performed.
Of course the State Journal can do
nothing but snarl, as it usually does
after being caught in a lie, and it re
torts by saying:
"The exposure by the republican
state central committee of the pass
riding habit of the fusion candidate
for governor in the late campaign
caused deep distress in the heart of
every fusionist and every treacherous
republican who wanted to see Mr.
Mickey defeated."
Postmortems will do little good at
this time, however. It is not probable
that Thompson lost many votes on ac
count of the Journal's forgery, but it
is refreshing to see a republican pa
per like the Star straighten things up
a bit. If it will now come out and
show that the republican state cen
tral committee circulated other equal
ly reprehensible lies, one can believe
that it really wants to be clean in
politics Instead of being animated by
a strong desire to "do' the Journal.
For example that story about Battle
Axe tobacco at the home for the friend
less was circulated up to the very last
moment, as was also the story that the
fusionists run the state in debt some
hundred thousand dollars, etc.
Patronize our advertisers.
Beginning to Beg
Edward Rosewater now presents the
humiliating spectacle of begging the
railroads to be good and "consent to a
rational and equitable basis for the
taxation of their properties." Ye gods
and little fishes, is this the Edward
Rosewater who so boldly . went into
court to compel a higher railroad as
sessment? Is this the Edward Rose
water who made a "non-partisan cam
paign" for higher railroad assessments
and gave support to republican state
candidates whom he knew would make
no adequate increase? It hardly seems
possible, and yet it is the same man.
Listen to his pleading:
The railroad corporations In Nebras
ka could take no wiser course than
to consent to a rational and equitable
basis for the taxation of their prop
erties. It must be apparent to those
who control their affairs that they can
not hope long to maintain the present
status, so unjust to the great body of
the taxpayers of the state. The ut
most within the bounds of possibility
for them to accomplish would be to
postpone for a very little time the pay
ment of the just share of the tax bur
den which they have so long succeed
ed in escaping.
The Bee puts this proposition to the
railroad corporations on the ground of
their own interest For them at this
juncture to precipitate a desperate
struggle to beat the lax roll,, to main
tain an army of lobbyists, agents and
attorneys, to plunge into litigation and
an elaborate system of manipulation
of the state government, wil be enorm
ously expensive to the railroads them
selves. The cost of such a campaigr.
would go far toward paying the pro
portion of taxes which is fairly due.
and which in spite of anything the
roads can do will ultimately have to
be paid anyhow.
Resistance on the part of the com
panies will certainly exasperate the
people. The facts demonstrating thj
tax discriminations against them are
too glaring and patent to be longer
concealed or glossed over or obscured
by false issues, no matter how cun
ningly trumped up or to be explained
away. It is utterly impossible to break
down the force of the truth. To at
tempt to seduce and manipulate the
government under these conditions
would require means so gross and ob
noxious that popular agitation would
spread like wildfire. It would be moon
struck madness for the railroad cor
porations of Nebraska now to provoke
such a situation.
The railroads can richly afford to
pay the same ratio of taxes that other
property pays. They receive a lavish
share of the benefit of the govern
ment in police protection and in other
ways no other property in the state
so large a share. But they cannot so
well afford to have the people of Ne
braska lay a rough hand on the rate
making power, as has been done under
far less provocation in Iowa, Texas
and some other states. It is easier to
excite than to regulate a popular agi
tation, and the carrier corporations
should beware how they exasperate
the people of Nebraska Into a move-
stop merely with a reform of assess
ment, but will inevitably go the full
length of overhauling transportation
rates a most serious fact for the com
panies if they will stop to think of it.
The people would be only too glad to
meet the railroad corporations more
than half way for a reasonable accom
modation. Such an adjustment, while
relieving the roads of the vast expense
involved in continuous political man
ipulations, would secure permanent
comfort to both parties and go far to
elevate the plane of Nebraska politics.
A Rallying Cry
Although The Independent cannot
agree with the conclusions of the Mis
souri World as to matters of history,
especially anything which would tend
to show that Bryan ever Intentionally
did anything for the purpose of dis
organizing the people's party, yet we
are in hearty accord with the World
that "the great issues still are: Green
backs instead of bank money; and gov
ernment railroads Instead of corpora
tion railroads. The Independent is in
hearty accord with the World in say
ing, "Let every greenbacker and pop
ulist stand true to the people's party
and begin now the battle of 1904."
There Is not a particle of doubt that
the growth of the people's party
stopped in 1896 after the Chicago
platform was adopted. Whether that
platform was a shrewd device of the
money power, as the World avers, we
do not know. But we are satisfied
that Bryan was and Is sincere in his
advocacy of that platform. Several
million men are sincere in their be
lief in the principles therein enun
ciated, and a great many of them go
the whole way with the populists on
the railroad and money questions.
What they will do if the democratic
convention of 1904 either expressly re
pudiates or straddles or ignores the
Chicago and Kansas City platforms, no
man can tell; but it is not hard to see
that the populist organization ought
to be kept up. As the World truly
says, "Millions of men agreeing on
what they want cannot be kept sep
arated long."
THE EQUIVALENT RETURN ,
Mr. Jonas Argues for Pa bile Owaerskip
f Monopoly
Editor Independent: Industrial jus
tice is attained when all workers se
cure an equivalent return for their la
bor. This is possible only when mo
nopoly is open to none or Is free to
all.
The philosophy of the competitive
industrial system is, that under It, the
law of supply and demand will allot
the equivalent return to all, because if
one Industry secured more profitable
returns than another, effort would be
attracted to it, causing surplus and
cheapening; also depletion with great
er cost, until the equilibrium was re
stored. This system would have ap
proximated industrial justice had all
thought of monopoly been utterly re
jected by all, for monopoly renders the
law of supply and demand inoperative,
hence establishes unequal returns, for
some industries are more easily and
quickly monopolized than others, and
some are not susceptible to monopoly
at all. The unequal returns are now
shown forth in the billions accruing to
monopoly, and the bread and water
standard of living, forced upon the
workers, because they were compelled
to keep the bond of the competitive
system. Monopoly of land or the ma
terial forces, that-admitted no rights
of the unborn. Monopoly of the pub
lic offices, open only to those fresh
from college, and under 45 years of
age. Tariff monopolies, fostered at
enormous expense, now grown big
enough to defy the nation, and "hold
up' its necessities. Monopoly of the
means of production and distribution,
whereby they control employment, and
dictate the wage and vote. Thus mo
nopoly has destroyed the competitive
industrial system, plundered the peo
ple, deprived them of liberty, and
betrayed the country.
When a few Industrialjmlts broke
the national 1)onaBlndlngEem "all;""
they became guilty of industrial trea
son and it is proper for the people lft
their governmental capacity to. war
upon, and compete with them Indus
trially, by the production and sale of
commodities and smash them. Just
as they do all public enemies.
It is in the constitution of things
that only the law of supply and de
mand, will determine the just and
equivalent return to all. There are two
ways to establish it: retain the com
petitive system, and totally eliminate
monopoly. This is now an utter im
possibility. Second, make monopoly
public, that it may be equally open to
all; substitute co-operation for com
petition, and thus restore the law of
supply and demand, which works as
follows: Who wants to be judge, 'at
$7,000, 3 hours daily labor, and 10
weeks holiday, with pay? The enorm
ous "supply" would quickly make the
terms less engaging. Who wants to
drop dead from an electric light pole
at $9 a week? The limited "supply"
would make the terms more engaging.
And thus the "equivalent return"
would be accurately determined for all.
We prate of our advanced civiliza
tion, and pretend to study the genesis
of crime with employment (which
includes morals, liberty and life) In
private control, bah!
Organized labor Is now strong
enough to win as the plundered peo-:
pie's champion. Let them capture the
law making power, with the soft po
litical snaps. Let all editors with a
conscience, open their columns to the
people, for the consideration of these
vital questions, and "supply and de
mand" will be made permanent, the
promise of God become visible, and "a
man made more precious than fine
gold." Isaiah, 13:12.
LEVIN T. JONES. .
202 W. Barre st., Baltimore, Md.
It was the stay-at-home vote that
done the business. There were six
hundred le3S votes cast than were cast
a year ago. J. P. Hale, in Red Cloud
Nation.
With a republican majority of 25
in the senate and 62 in the house, the
beet sugar interest ought to have no
trouble in getting an appropriation
to pay off those old warrants and
claims that piled up when 'Gene Moore
was auditor. Then, too, here is the
chance of a lifetime for Bill Dorgan
to get pay for that "contract" the
state relieved him of some years ago.
Of course, Mickey would sign the bills.
The Independent Is pleased to noto
that Frank J. Tavlor was elected coun
ty attorney In Howard county.
