The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-08-19
ANSWER TO NELSON
Eugene g. Hay Defends the Repub-
licanism Of the North &.
west. s,..g.H
Antitrust Policy Of Roosevelt and
Van SAINT Anti-social-
istic.

+ I1euTy LUOLulS NELSON'S letLerS from VIII"
nesota. to the Boston Herald, in which he
accuses the people of the northwest Of being
mostly populists and socialists, have aroused
q great deal Of interest all over the co Nm
try Eugene q. Hay to-day replies 70 Mr.
Nelson IN an article published n the Boston
Transcript. copy Of which follows:
N the west where we have known some
party, the word "populst'' has come to have
far broader meaning than the mere desig-
nation OF G member of that party. 1t has
uble political writer or speaker who has.
sublime disregard Of both facts and logic;
one at the foundation of whose discussion, is:
a theory evolved from his inner conscious
ness; whose fact consist of bold and reck-
less assertions, and whose conclusions are
shaped and moulded to fit his theory. In
this respect Professor Henry LOOMS Nelson,
who, during his summer vacation, has a
rowing commission from the Boston Herald.
Is populist, in whose presence the beard
OF Kansas an populist would turn gray with
his guns on President Roosevelt from New
Ems gland, 1t was none OF our business. But
when he works his typewriter from COM
Portable seat in Pullman Ger, as ne crosses
TINS state, and tells the people OF Boston
that the republicans of Minnesota are social
lists, we become interested.
Professor Nelson has two pet theories:
One Is that the republican party is all wrong.
and the other is that President Roosevelt is
a fraud. OF course he thinks these are facts
and treats them as SUCH. Thirty or forty
years ago II was quite IaSnlOQaDle LOT EuS-
lishmen to visit the United States. spend
fortnight between New York, Philadelphia
and Boston, return home and write book
telling all about the American people: Cross
in their memory, they found US to be bar
bariars and frankly said SO in the book.
So Professor Nelson in his hurried trip to the
northwest, brought his pet theories with him.
He found the very large majority or tine
people were republicans and intense believers
in Roosevelt, he had no difficulty, there
FORE in reaching the conclusion that we were
socialists, and plainly said so to The people
| OF Boston in u tWo-column article IN the
Herald His principal grievance seems to be
that the republicans of, Minnesota are 80 de-
destruction of competition! and by some som
process Of reasoning which I cannot quite
follow, he connects this With heir aeye.io n
paternalism. Because they believe the gov
lions which it creates, and that it should give
protection to home Industries by its tariff
laws, he styles them socialists
Not Socialists.
"a socialist is one who believes in or ad-
yocates socialism that does not embrace
within its meaning destruction OF comps
tition The republicans, or Minnesota are
opposed to all forms of so-callea trusts; they
are opposed to the consolidation of parable
and competing lines of railroads, because
that consolidation destroys competition In
, that line of business which IS of the highest
Importance to their .well-being; they have
put this opposition into solemn enactment
by a statute forbiddng such consolidation
and by other statutes defining. denounelns
and forbidding trusts and combinations ! tnf>
tition. This opposition and these laws grow
olit OF the utter abhorrence Of socialism b.
the, republicans Of Minnesota. They helieyt
in representative democracy. They know l
It fails there will come first, socialism, the1
anarchy, then tyranny and all the struggle!
of the Anglo-Saxon race from Ardoch Moo
to San Juan Hill will have been for .naught
They do not intend that it shall fall henc
these laws, hence their desire for their en-
forcement They know that under democratic
form of government the law is king ant
that the law is but the enlightened interpre
tation Of the peoples will. They know tina
the safety Of democratic institutions lie
in the enforcemnt of the law. These ar
cardinal doctrines with the republicans o
Minnesota What true American repudiate
them? They believe in President Roosevelt
because he is a true American, because b
believes in these doctrines, and more, the.
believe in him because he does not confin
his belief in these doctrines to campaign
platforms and campaign speeches, but Iha
the integrity and the courage to carry then
word, he is dear to the republicans, of Min
nesota because they have absolute faith tina
he has the purpose and the courage to enforc
the law against every offender and thereb
LAS shown by the election returns Their
has been some growth Of socialism In Min
nesota, but not SO much as in many state
been checked. It has been checked b
Theodore Roosevelt and Philander G. Kno
and Samuel R. Van SAINT. The growth in tn
socialistic vote in Minnesota and in the othe
states came from the Of. repeated assertfo
by those in authority that, the goyerhmen
was powerless to deal with the trusts. TAX
ing this as the starting point, the socialis
less to deal with the evils and dangers tina
all intelligent men recognize in modern com
mercial conditions, then the government
eventually gain absolute control Of: all {
those utilities that are essential to man
happiness, if not to his very existence; tha
the government itself This, they say,
commercial despotism resulting from the I'm
potence Of democracy. BY this process {
reasoning it is easy ITO reach the conclusio
that the remedy lies In government OWNERSHIP
| + of all utilities that would be limited social
ism. But Roosevelt and Knox and Van Sar
have denied that the government tY powerles
by their acts; they have ave- put The machinery
the law in motion, and bys'thes enforcemer
t of the law will eradicate the evils of th
!, trusts and check the growth: Of socialism.
n Why MInnesotans Are ProtectIonists.
1.-THE republicans of Minnesota are pre-
= tectonists. They believe the policy Of pro
{ tecting our Industries by our customs law
not only lies at the source of our industr1;
prosperity, but that it is the safeguard {
, our Tree institutions. a pFoteCtlye NtdFi
, does not tend toward socialism: It does NJ
destroy competition it simply forces con
t petition to exist on equal terms. Foreig
goods may compete with American goods
the American market by paying such duty {
will equalize the cost Of production undt
the wage system in ;the despotic governmeI
where they are. manufactured, and that
this free government where the wage work.
! is part Of the government and helps
. shape and form it's policy. The republica
rarty of Minnesota believes In protcctio
wherever needed and to the extent needed
, maintain the American wage standard ar
{ guarantee reasonable returns upon the actu
money invested in American enterprises; fu
her than This they arc unwilling to go.
> them protection is principle sound
1 economies sound ais a government polio
but the tariff schedule is not fetish to
: bowed down to and worshiped. They reco,
: nize that changing conditions require chang
in our tariffs. and this, from time to tim
: they do and will demand. They believe TIL
: these changes should be made, whenever pc
= sible, thru reciprt city agreements with 9TH
. countries. They believe that reciprocity
8 the natural outgFowth :Of protection, and tn
: thru it the protective policy gives a matte
a leverage in extending its commerce tn
4 could not otherwise exist But the republ
cans of Minnesota are not unsound enough
! their political education to discover al
t connection between the tariff and the trust
= | The latter. so far as they exist as an ev
! they know to graw from the abuse and vio
r tion Of corporation laws, unaffected and uni
p fuenced by custom laws. These with fir
? belief in sound currency, based upon 60
G standard, and unfaltering faith in Il
constitution and all of the amendments, al
a firm conviction that all should be enforce
l Minnesota. Nowhere in the country a
: saner political views held by the people. Mi
2 nesota has been singularly free from ism
r and crank ideas: The republican party hi
Ia- f~-r .>S1/ 4 Z Z. L..