The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1900-10-25
Halt Imperialism Elect Bryan.

halt imperiallSm-Etect Bryan.
Either William j. Bryan or William
Mckinley will be elected president of
of the United States in November.
There are other organizations and can
didates which may command hundreds
of thousands of the popular vote, but
they are not reckoned in considering
the ultimate issue OF the contest.
The battle of 1896 was fought and
largely decided on an issue that has
been entirely overshadowed by the as
sertion of new and most dangerous
policy to the tranquility and safety of
the republic, Capitalization has been
appreciated by intelligent political OBJ
servers as the great peril to the repub-
lie ever since the war; but it has been
wholesomely restrained by the people,
and never reached the appalling atti-
tude of positive imperialism until
President Mckinley proclaimed and
enforced it, regardless of the wise limi-
tations upon executive authority.
The paramount issue between the
two great political parties today is that
of imperial prerogatives against the
true Jeffersonian theory of government
by the people,; and it must now be
Obvious to all intelligent voters that
there can be no hope of hating the
present reckless and riotious spirit of
Imperialism in any other way than by
the election of William J Bryan as the
next president of the United States. 1t
is the vital, the paramount issue, and it
must triumph whenever the people of
the nation appreciate the sovereign
power and assert the majesty Of popu-
lar rule.
We are now engaged in a costly and
bloody struggle in the Philippines that
could and should have been avoided by
recognizing the right of the people to
rule themselves; and under the imperi-
al policy, now for the first time pro-
claimed to the country and to the world
the president inaugurates war in the
far distant east, without the authority
of congaess and in defiance of the su-
preme law of the nation; and has made
and prosecuted war, and proposes to
make peace, with all the authority of
the Gear of Russia.
The nation is thus in peril from the
threatened subversion of the sovereign
power of the land that is supporting
the concentration of capital against the
interest of labor; that is debauching
ouI political system by the open col
lection of millions of money from pro-
tected trusts to expend in the national
political contest and that has inaugur-
ated reign of reckless profigacy and
extravaganza unexampled in the his
tory of the nation. 1t must be halted
by the people if they would preserve
their own government "of the people,
by the people, and for the people,"
and it can be done only by the election
of William J. Bryan as the next presi-
dent.
The democrats of Pennsylvania have
a great duty and great opportunity in
the present contest. They can become
an important, indeed controlling,
factor, not only in restoring Pennsyl-
vania to puerer political system and
better administration, but in gaining
for themselves and for all good citizens
an honest BALLOT and fair representa-
tion Of all parties in the national and
state legislatures. Democrats have
the cordial cooperation of independent
republicans, and they must be false tc
themselves if they fail to control both
branches of the legislature, and thus
place the democracy of Pennsylvania
in q position to command the conf.
dence of the people and win future vic.
tories, because they shall deserve the
victory.
Halt Imperialism = elect Bryan
! Philadelphia Times. ~o~'s".s