Waterbury Democrat., 1902-09-25
DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION.
Continued from First Page)

called to make the fundamental law of the state of Connecticut, while the two hundred men shall have one vote also.
 Yet in spite of the honest belief that the call was intended to result in noth- ing but delay, the democrats through out the state, relying on the justice or their cause. said this should not be made a party issue, and word went forth from the leaders to elect the pest and the most honorable man that could be found irrespective of his politics, and hoping against hope, believing that it was impossible for any political party that was responsible for that convention to dare to face the people without giving them what they claimed, towns sent their delegates. and with the result you all know. You know that at the behest of the party leader at the last hours of that conven- ton, a so.caIled constitution was framed, placed before the people of the state. and was rejected, as it should have been rejected, because that so- called constitution embodied the same partisan political spirit that spoke in the call upon which it was made; that so-called constitution was so unfair, so unjust, that the governor of the state, whom no republican has ever dared to accuse of disployalty to his party, re- pudiated the same, and advised the people to vote against it. What con- tion of affairs have we here? The governor of this state, honest and conscientious, and SUD- ported by that part of his marty which represent those qualities, op- posing this so-called constitution. The Constitutional Reform League organiz- ed many, many years ago, for the ex- press purpose of agitating this much needed reform opposing this so-called constitution, and the same being de- fended, if remember rightly, by none, if you omit the partisan press, except those who had a hand in forming the same, and were bound to justify their own work. The governor of this state telling the people of the smaller towns, sYou now have for probably the last time an opportunity to pre- serve the autonomy of your own towns by doing justice to the towns having larger population, and that if you do not take advantage of this opportunity you will be in great danger of losing all that you value so highly" All though it is not the policy of the dem ocratic party to disturb the historic town government of this state, yet it does demand an adequate representa- tion for the large towns in proportion to their population.
 But why should this position, so palpably unfair and unjust, be as- sumed by the republican party in this state, that party which claims to be the essence of law, based upon justice and morality?
 If you will examine che statutes of this state passed since the war, you will find at least partial explanation of this blind position that is causing the republican party in this state to rush forward to it's destruction like horse with the blind staggers, without sense of danger or peril.
 We are living in commercial age, and the ruling passion is avarice. Let me illustrate how that spirit has taken possession of the republican party in this state, and how it dominates all those sentiments and principles by which the republican party was actu-H ated during the war of the rebellion, and for short time afterwards.
 You have a state to-day, governed because of the constitution under which we live, not by the people, not by the legislature, not by the governor of the state, but by a system controlled by a few men, who dominate through this spirit of avarice the whole peO- pie of this state And how is it done? You have state governed by commis- sioners. The business of this state is transacted, not by the persons elected by the people, because that would be inconsistent with the representation. And so you have over forty different state boards and commissioner as follows:
 Commissioner of the school fund, established in 1887, with salary of $2, 2,500 year, and clerk and an as- sistant clerk; an insurance commission CT, established in 1887, with a salary of $3,500, an actuary, a chief clerk, with three assistant clerks; railroad commissioners, three of them, S3,OO0 a year each, with clerk and draughts- man, established in 1887; commission CT of building and loan association, salary S2,5O0, established in 1897; bank commissioners, two of them, salary of each S2,50O, established in 1887; com missioner of fisheries and game, S3 per day, established in<1S95; shell fish com missioners, $5 per day, three of them, established in 1889, clerk for the same with salary of $400, established in 1895; commissioner of labor statistics, salary of $2,500, with clerk and an assistant clerk, established In 1885; dairy commissioners, salary $1 BOO, with deputy, established in 1886;. commissioners of pharmacy, three of them, $500 each, established in 1895; state board of education, $3,OO0 per member, and authority fo expend all that is necessary for it's purposes; commissioner of domestic animals, salary 5, 1,5OO, established in 1897; sew age commissioners, five members, $500 each, established in 1899; state board of health, expenses and salary not to exceed $5,O00, established in 1878; auditor of public accounts, salary of $10 per day, established in 1895; in- spectors of factories, three members, salary $500 each, established 1887; state fire marshal and deputy, salaries $2,9O0 and $1.500, established 1887: county commissioners, established in 1875, with a salary of $5 per day at that time, and this office is now recog- .nized by the practical thinking men of the state of Connecticut to be the greatest political machine that exists