The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-10-14
MEET WITH 4 FIRST
Harris and 0vermeyer Speak
TO Small Aud fences.
NO ENTHUSIASM AROUSED
Local Democratic Leaders
Discouraged Over Situation

If ever two political meetings met with
a frost, the two advertised for yesterday
| by the Democrats for the Auditorium
met with frost that kills. For severa
weeks the central committee of this
county has been counting on the results
Of the two meetings yesterday. For the
reason of making a final impression on
| the people of the city and county, two
! speakers from other portions of the
| state were brought here. They talked,
but it was mostly to empty seats. Sen
ator Harris spoke in the afternoon Har-
ris is a brainy man. People give him
credit for his sense but for all Of that
he could not get a crowd. There were
less than three hundred people present
during the afternoon. The Democratic
leaders looked chagrined but fondly hop
ed that the night meeting would be a
redeeming card. But it was not. There
has not been a political meeting in the
city that had as few voters present and
to fill the Auditorium it would take sew
eral divisions larger than the one in at
tendance last night.
Harris made good speech from the
Democratic point Of view, but the nom
attendance of the rank and file OF his
party chilled him. He could not get up
enthusiasm. When a cheer did come it
was so faint that it hardly reached the
balcony before it died away.
At night the audience was a little
Z Low 10 7f ha If n11t
for all of that the lower floor of the
building was not filed, to say nothing of
the few people in the gallery.
The situation here is getting to be a
serious matter with the Democratic
central committee. 1t means that the
people of the county are showing just
where they stand in the matter of opin-
ion in politics. The leaders figured on
the meetings Of yesterday and last night
to be the big events Of the campaign in
this city and for that reason the result
is particularly disappointing
As one Democrat said last night, the
speeches were all right, but they did
not seem to do any good and were out
of place.
Senator Harris devoted a great deal of
his time in trying to show he is justified
in condemning the administration for its
present policy toward the Philippines
even though he voted for the ratification
of the Paris treaty. He said:
when the question came up in con-
gress we were urged to ratify the treaty
and end the war. We were told that
such action would not preclude the
United States from following the same
policy with the Philippines as followed
with Cuba. We ratified the treaty in
order to end the war, and make the
Philippine problem a domestic question
There were enough who submitted and
voted for the treaty in order for it to
be ratified
Now the constitution of the United
States provides for only one class Of sub
Jects and they are citizens. There is no
other ground for an inhabitant of our
territory to occupy. The constitution con-
templates nothing but citizens"
Here the senator took I'D the compaign
worn declaration that "all men are Gre
ated free and equal" He made the
usual arguments on this that the Demo-
Gratis all make. He further said:
Il am an expansionist. I am the kind
of an expansionist that Jefferson was
When he made the Louisiana purchase #
was the proper thing to do. It was done
in order to annex territory for state pur
poses. 1t rounded out our territory and
gave us the room to develop as a nation
That is the kind of territorial annexation
that 1 am in favor of. That is the fun
damental idea of the expansion that is in
accord with our democratic institutions.
The Republicans rldicule us for want
ing to haul the flag down. It has been
taken down before. It was done in
Mexico, but we took it down. Wherever
we have raised our flag there it has re-
NAMED until we took it down We never
have and never win permit another ma
ton to haul down our flag. But we ca,
do so without compromising our national
honor if it is the best policy for the ma
ton to pursue"
senator Harris then produced quota
uons from speeches made by leading Re
pubhcans in the United States to show
how they stood on the expansion ones
ton The principle point was that they
were not in favor Of conquest to obtain
territory. He made the point that the
eDmocratic party had taken the same
position namely, that they were against
imperialism. Senator Harris admitted
that the Republicans are patriotic even
though they do not vote for Bryan. He
said:
l honor the man who looks at all sides
OF these questions and considers carefully
the ultimate results of the different mil
cies proposed. a man is none the less
patriotic If after. doing this. # he hon
estiy votes the Republican ticket.
In talking with reference 70 +bA obor.o
ter Of Filipinos Senate Harris pro5pca7
statements from General Charles A
King. Admiral Dewey and Others 49,
ing. according to his inte~prets+fo- +ba+
'He FlHpinos are as capable intellectually I
ana morally as an. people. He said tia.