Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1902-11-27
WILLIAM J. BRYAN
THE RETURNS OF THE
RECENT ELECTION.
A Careful Survey Of the Field Fails to Re.
veal Anything Gained by the Reorsanzers.
Abandonment Of the National Platform
Was Not a Success.

These democrats whose enthusiasm
Gibbs and flows with the political tides
will not be made jubilant by reading the
election returns OF last week. Later re.
turns not only fail to strengthen demo-
cratic Gains, but give further evidence
of republican gains. In the South the
usual majorites have been polled, but in
the northern states Rhode Island and
Nevada are the only ones that elected
democ' attic governors. Senator Teller
will probably be re elected, but it is due
to hold-over senators, the house being
republican. The democrats lose Harris
of Kansas, Turner OF Washington, Raw
ling OF Utah and Heitfeld Of Idaho, and
gain Lattimer in place of McLaurin in
South Carolina and Newlands in place Of
Jones in Nevada. The democrats have
gained few congressman and have lost
some, leaving the republicans in con-
troll.
Generally speaking, the democrats
made gains in the cities and lost in the
,untry, the explanation being, first,
that the city organization is more COM
plete, and second the present prices
have brought more advantage to the
farmers than to the wage-earners.
The result has been the same, too,
whether national platform of the party
was Endorsed or rejected. While the
Kansas City platform was Endorsed in
Rhode Island and Nevada the states that
we carried-it was ignored in New York
and California-states in which we
male gains.
On the other hand, we were defeated
in Wisconsin,, Indiana, Massachusetts
Illinois, Iowa, Connecticut, New Jersey
and Michigan, where they turned down
the Kansas City platform as well as in
Ohio. Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado Min.
nesota, Washington, and Idaho, where
it was introduced. Neither the regular
democrats nor the reorganizers can point
to the election as an evidence that their
plan of dealing with the issues will i'm
sure success, but the Kansas City plat.
form democrats can console themselves
with the fact that they were fighting for
principle and that they still have that
while those who fought only for victory
have nothing left.
The gain in California is doubtless due
to the activity Of the labor organizations
and to the fact that the democratic
party joined with them in the support of
candidates especially satisfactory to the
wage. earners.
In New York the gains were almost
entirely in the City of New York where
all factions were pulling together for
Coler. 1t is difficult to locate the credit
for all the gains made in the city or to
locate the blame for the failure to make
gains in the upstate counties. Coler
was very strong candidate and it is an
open question whether he was aided or
weakened by the fact that Mr.. Hill con-
trolled the convention which nominated
him.
In Massachusetts the reorganizers had
control and they nominated man more
acceptable to the corporations than the
republican candidate, but he was beaten
badly enough to show that even from
the low standpoint of expediency MOTH
ing is to be gained by an attempt to re-
publicanize the democratic party. Pos
sibly it was just as we'll to make the
experiment at this time rather than
later. Mr.. Williams said year ago that
lie would remain out of politics as long
as the party stood by its principles, but
promised to return as soon as there was
any attempt to surrender its creed. Mr..
Williams can now take up the work
again and with him as leader it ought
not to be difficult to put the Massachu-
sets democracy again on sound prin
ciples.
The reorganizers of Indiana made
great boasts after their victory in the
state convention. Well, the Sentinel
had things its own way; it was in posi-
ton to have controlling influence in
the management of the campaign. 1t
reioiced over the elimination of every
issue that was "dead" or even wounded
and yet it has to mourn as large a re
publican majority as could have been
polled against the Kansas City platform.
The democrats of Indiana have lost the
advantage of education along democratic
lines; they have made it necessary to
apologize for democratic timidity and
now they have met with overwhelm
ing defeat. Before they enter another
campaign the democrats Of indiana
should take to their stand on the nation
al platform of the party and try to carr
a victory by deserving it.
In Illinois Mr.. Hopkins, whose cor