The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1904-11-04
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE At
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

permit the conduct of this party to go
unrebuked is to invite the establish
ment of new and dangerous princi-
pies and standards for our guidance as
a people. Our return to old-fashioned
ways cannot, in my opinion, be too
precipitate, unless we are prepared to
shut our eyes to the consequences that
will follow if we proceed along a path
that is full of danger to our future.
We need what patriotism, devotion
to principle and high moral advice
have until late always given us-a
government of law and constitutional
restraint of caprice or reckless ad-
venture.
I'VE need no new light; we need
no new advices. we need no new the
ories upon this subject; we need the
coinage or the invention of the brain
of no man, however well disposed he
may be, to devise what he conceives to
be for the best interests of this land.
Our fathers determined this for us a
long time ago and we have 1t as a
part of our political heritage. We
need only to preserve that heritage
and to keep our sacred possessions
safe from attack, either from without
or within. in order to insure our ma
terial prosperity and normal well be-
ing as a nation. And any conception
of government such as has been set
up for our adoption in this country by
the Republican party during the past
few years, is such an attack both from
without and from within.
In an earlier utterance / have re-
ferred in detail to what is notoriously
going on in the matter of funds by the
Republican party for the campaign.
Now, l know, as you know that money
is required in order to defray the ex-
penses of a campaign. Under right
conditions its collection and expendi-
ture are equally legitimate. But the
spectacle of demanding campaign
funds now presented to this country,
when rightly regarded. is of a charac-
ter to shock the moral sense.
I'VE shall do well to pause for a
moment to ask whittier we are drift
ing, in our indifference to right stand
ards and to our old-fashioned sense
of propriety in such matters.
Congress creates a new depart
ment of commerce and labor OF that
department the president of the Unit
ed States appoints secretary. That
secretary was his private secretary.
Within that department provision is
made for the collection from large
corporations. including the so-called
trusts, of information, which it is to
be born in mind, is to be submitted to
the president for public or private
use as he may direct. BY grace of the
same executive, this secretary, through
whose department this information is
collected. becomes the chairman of
the National Republican committee;
his chief duty is to collect funds for
the purpose of use for the president.
"And it is now notorious that there
has resulted from this organization
portunity-whatever may be the
precise way in which it is made effec-
tive-an overfiowing treasury to the
committee, of which boast is openly
and continually made.
Although this may be satisfactory
to the conscience of Republicans it
must, | firmly believe, be condemned
as nothing short of scandalous, not
alone by myself or the Democratic
party, but by the American people as
well.
1T is said by Mr.. Hay that the char
acter of Mr.. Lincoln furnishes the
standard for Mr. Roosevelt in his con-
duct as president. / do not have to
pause to hear your laundering mo-
when | ask, would Lincoln have done
or permitted this to be done?
THE whole performance is a
shameless exhibition of a willingness
to make compromise with decency, in
order that sums OF money may be
gathered together sufficiently vast to
justify the insolent boast as the Re-
publican managers so confidently pre-
dict. The performance is entitled only
to the credit that it in no sense par
takes of hypocrisy. 1t is as bold as it
is improper and indefensible.
1T has been my fortune to take
an active part in three presidential
campaigns. The first of these result
ed in the election, in 1876, of Samuel
j. Tilden. The younger generation,
which has come upon the scene since
that time, can scarcely understand the
forces which this great man had to
meet and combat He himself felt
how unequal was the contest which
he waged. He knew that he was de-
voted to the interests of his country
men and that they sympathized with
the aims which he so we'll represented,
but he was disposed to admit that he
always felt how strong the odds were
against him. and how almost hopeless
II was for him to combat the combined
forces Of greed and Official power.
'The 1880 campaign found the party
m