Evening journal., 1897-03-03
BRYAk'S DOVER SPEECH
Continued f4ona Fi=st Page.

ldWS. ltcdu lut tudtttl VI q tOA ApOi u
tion; read the law under which it is Or
ganized and you cannot find a corpora
tion 10 which the people gave powers
expressly to be used in the control of
politics Nor could you secure the pas
sage through any legislative body of
an act creating monied organization for
political purposes. If you would not dare
create a corporation for political pur-
poses, you should not permit corpora
ton when created to go into politics.
will give several reasons why say this,
and apply them to a banking corpora
ton. Suppose q banking corporation
goes into politics and contributes
money to a campaign fund. You can't
tell whether It contributes It's own
money or the depositors' money. IL it
fails and does not pay the deposltors,
then 1t is the depGsitOrs money and not
the banks money If it is a large corpo-
ration whose stock is sold on the mar
ket you don't know whether the stock
holders money Is being turned over to
the defence Of a cause which the stock
holder opposes or a cause in which the
stockholder believes.
The duty of legislator is a difficult
one, and is quite as responsible as II is
great What Is the main difficulty of a
legislator? To stand as an impartial
arbiter between all the people as indi-
ylduals and the few who are alw7y VS.
present around legislative body. The
best-meaning person is apt to be inn
posed upon because the few are present
and clamorous and the rest are absent
and at work III you make the infiu-
ences which surround him worse you
make the pressure greater. II you make
the duress sufficient, and it. has come
to amount to duress, a man does not
stand there as free agent to do what
his conscience dictates and what his po-
litical platform demanded, and In this
connection / want to speak of the worst
influence that a legislator has to con-
tend with. | noticed when | visited
your State House to-day that one door
opened into the House Of Representa-
tives and another into the lobby. Now
bv that term will be meant your gall
lery. too, but the term lobby has come
TO have a well-understood meaning. A
great curse to the leglslator-city
county, state and nationals the lob
byist. Not the lobbyist who comes to
10 before committee either to oppose
or favor a bill; not the lobbyist who
comes open and above-board to point
out the merits or defects in proposed
measures but the curse is the lobbyist
who talks in private and there puts his
argument quietly into the ear of the
member or still more quietly inserts it
into the pocket. That is the lobbyist
who IL to be feared. My friends, mem
ber Of a Legislature, or of Congress, or
of City Council who is openly corrupt
are not many. Corruption and bribery
direct is not as common as people often
imagine. But the influence that turns
more than bribery Is the enormous con-
tribuiion that can be made by corpora
tions that have special legislation to
ask We placed our representatives
under obligation to vote their senti-
ments but IL the great corporations arc
permitted to contribute great amounts
to the campaign funds they cannot but
have great held upon the men elected
and they say to them unless you vote
for this measure we will see to 1t that
YOU don't come back any more. The
individual can hardly cope with such
influences. If you want purity in gov
ernment and legislation you cannot af-
ford TO surround the legislators with
These dangerous and almost overpower-
ing temptations. Individuals, though
worth ten times as much cannot raise
as much money as one corporation, al
though II is not worth one-tenth as
much. II you want good government
YOU have got to recognize the fact that
laws are made by human beings and
that they are bad enough at best, and
that when surrounded by temptations
not at their best.
Thomas Jefferson was a firm believer
in his day in our form of government
and the idea that people were capable
of self-gCyernment. Yet he realized as
every student of political history real
izes that frailty Is characteristic oi
human beings who were to conduct that
government.
Our Constitution in Nebraska was
made at comparatively recent date
You will find that recent Constitutions
contain greater safeguards than tho
older ones This is because experience
mas demonstrated that legislators are
hest when most closely watched. In
Congress they don't require the calling
of the yeas and nays unless demanded
by certain portion of those present
In our state, and in many of the state.
of the Union, no measure can be Law
unless every member votes so that his
constituents can know that he voteC
one way or the other ] believe tha- tbs
members Of Congress are all high, in
tellecuual and moral men. / believe II
is as good a body Of men and as pa-
triotic and earnest as you can find, and
vet ! believe Congress would be better
II every member had to vote one way
or the other. The rising vote is not re.
corded there, and / have seen a mem
Der vote one way on a rising vote. ard
then when the names were called on
tho same question vote the other way
Men are only boys of a larger growth
and like boys, a little better for heina
watched Every well-meaning raa is
glad to be watched. Every public ser.
want who wants to do his duty will he
glad TO have as many restraints as pos
sible thrown about him in his legisla
nve career. Every legislator, every
executive officer and every judicial Off
Ger, If he is well-meaning. pure-hearted
and anxious to do right, will be glad Il