The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-09-24
BEGS THE QUESTION
Continued from First Page.)

| (COnilnueQ lTOln tISL FdSS.l
from the Republican party you have
taken from it its most sacred memory.
my friends. applause and cries Of:
There viii be nothing left.'O
SUPREME COURT.
Now, let me call your attention to
another thing which they complain Of.
They say we criticize the supreme
court Let me read you what We say
on that subject"
Mr.. Bryan then read the plank of the
Chicago platform in regard TO the in
come tax decision, and resumed:
81 call your attention to the fact that
the court overruled the decision of 100
years. 1t is a fact. Have we not the
right to mention a fact. We declare
congress ought to use all constitutional
powers which remain. Will they insist
that, having taken part, We dare not
use what they qeft- We demand that
congress shall use such powers as may
! come from the reversal by the court as
it may hereafter be constituted. Has no
court hereafter a right TO reverse the de-
cision of this court? If not, then what
right had this court TO reverse the
courts of 100 years before it? Zap
pIause) This court changes from time
/ to time; judges die or resign and new
| judges take their places. Is il not pos
sible, my friends, that future judges
may adhere to the precedents OF 100
( years instead of adhering to decision
rendered by A majority of one, and that
one changed his mind? loud ap-
plause) When did our opponents find
that decision Of the supreme court was
so sacred? Why, this decision would
not have been rendered but for the fact
that the men who had to pay the income
tax attacked the decision OF the su-
prerne court and asked this court 10
overturn former decision. (Applause)
Every time a lawyer goes into court and
asks for a reversal of the decision OF
the court-and it is not an infrequent
thing-every time a lawyer does it he
attacks the correctness of the decision
which he desires to have reversed. Let
me read you what the Republican plat
form said about decisions OF the SUI
preme court in 1860: That we condemn
the recent re-opening of the African
slave trade under the cover of our ma
tional flag, aided by perverslonS or
judicial power.
THAT is what that platform said. 1t
declared the decision of the court was a
perversion of judicial power. There IS
language in our platform that IS as
harsh on the supreme court as that Re
publican platform. And they call upon
congress in that platform TO take
prompt and efficient measures Tor the
total and final suppression OF the ex-
ecrable traffic. Ny friends, on these
two questions, on which we are assalled
by the Republican party, we have not
taken as emphatic stand as the Re
-r-taf oh elected
a president of the United States
IN LINCOLN'S INAUGURAL.
LET me read to you what Abraham
Lincoln said about the supreme court
This is from his inaugural address. This
is not the party platform, my TRENDS
This is not an extract from public
speech, uttered on the spur of the mo-
ment / read you from a newspaper In
the inaugural address of Abraham Lin
coin: L do not forget the position as
summed by the supreme court, nor l deny
that such decision must be binding in
any case upon the parties to the suit as
to the object of that suit, while they
are also entitled to a very high respect
and consideration in all parallel cases
by all other departments of the govern |
ment.'
81 quote again: AT the same time, |
the candid citizen must confess that II
the policy of the government upon vital
questions affecting the whole people Is
10 be fixed by the decisions or the su- /
preme court the instant they are made,
as in ordinary litigation between par
ties in personal action, the people Will
have ceased TO be their own rulers, nav
ing to that extent specifically resigned |
their government into the hands OF that /
In
'.Mr. Lincoln says that when it is as
scented that the supreme court has
right 10 determine the policy of the gov
eminent on great questions that then
we will have resigned our government |
into the hands of the supreme court.
(Applause) Our platform is not as
harsh as the language of Abraham Lin
coin We do Tot criticize the court as
he criticized it and when he uttered
those words, he was standing as CO.
ordinate part of the government of the
United States.
II quote these authorities. my friends,
in order that you may see how far
fetched is the criticism levelled against
us. / quote these in order that you may
see that the very men who use the criti-
cism against US, must, in order TO do
SO, abandon the Republican platform
upon which Lincoln was elected.
but L must apologize for quoting
Abraham Lincoln as a Republican au-
thority. (Applause) Abraham Lin
coin is no longer a Republican authori-
ty. Abraham Lincoln believed in a gov
eminent by the people, of the people and
for the people. And that is not Repub-
lican in this campaign.
THE LAWS ENFORCEMENT.
Now our opponents say we are OBJ
posed 10 the enforcement of law. l deny
II. L stand as the candidate for three
parties. l do not speak Of myself as an
Individual, because the individual IS lost
n d campaign of this character. But.