Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1904-11-17
BRYAN's NEW CODE.
SLOGAN FOR NEXT CAMPAIGN
MUST BE DEATH TO TRUSTS"
Democrats Must Rely Upon Radical%
ism to Build Up Party-Defeat
Due to Control of Con-
servatives.,


servatives.,-
Abandonment of radicalism at the st.
Louis convention is, in the opinion of
William ]. Bryan, the cause of the dem
ocratic party's defeat at the polls in the
presidential election. In the following
lengthy statement given out by him at
Lincoln, Neb., November 8, he says:
Mr.. Bryan wants to go to work at once
to reclaim the democratic party to rad
icalism and says he will do all he can
in the fight.
The democratic party has met with
an overwhelming defeat in the national
election. AS yet the returns are not
sufficiently complete to permit analysis,
as it is impossible to say whether the
result is due to an actual increase in
the number of republican voters or to a
falling off in the democratic vote. This
phase of the subject will be dealt with
when the returns are all In.
THE questions for consideration at
this time Are: What lesson does the
election teach? And what of the future?
Parker Not to Blame.
"The defeat of Judge Parker should
not be considered a personal n He
did as well as he could under the cir
cumstances; he was the victim of I'M
favorable conditions and of a mistaken
party policy. He grew in popularity as
the campaign progressed and expressed
himself mor and more strongly upon
the trust question, but could not over
come the heavy odds against him.
The sorcalled conservative demo-
Gratis charged the defeats of 1896 and
1900 to the party's position on the
money question and insisted that a vic
tory could be won by dropping the coin
age question entirely. The convention
accepted this theory and the platform
made no reference to the money ques-
ton, but Judge Parker felt that it was
his duty to his personal adher-
ence to the gold standard. His gold
telegram, as it was called, while en-
barrassing to the democrats of the west
and south, was applauded by the east,
ern press. He had the cordial indorse-
ment of Mr.. Cleveland, who certified
that the party had returned to safety
and sanity he had the support of the
democratic papers which bolted in 1896,
and he also had the aid of nearly all of
those who were prominent il the cam
paigns of 1896 and 1900,' and yet his de-
feat is apparently greater than the party
suffered in either of those years.
1T is unquestionable also that Judge
Parker's defeat was not local, but gen.
eral, the returns from the eastern states
being as disappointing as the returns
from the west. The reorganizers are in
complete control of the party, they
planned the campaign and carried it on
according to their own views and the
verdict against their plan is a unani-
nous inc
Surely silver cannot be blamed for
this defeat, for the campaign was run
on a gold basis. Neither. can the defeat
be charged to emphatic condemnation
of the trusts, for the trusts were not as
sailed as vigorously this year as they
were four years ago. r
1T is evident that the campaign did
not turn upon the question of imperial
ism and it is not fair to consider the
result as a personal victory for the pres
ident, although his administration was
the subject of criticism.
Conservatives Cause Defeat.
"The result was due to the fact that
the democratic party attempted to be
conservative in the presence of condi-
lions which demand radical remedies.
1t sounded a partial retreat when it
should have ordered a charge all along
the line. ,
I'm 1896 the line was drawn for the
first time during the present generation
between plutocracy and democracy, and
the party's stand on the side of democ-
racy alienated a large number of pluto
cratic democrats who in the nature of
things cannot be expected to return. and
1t drew to itself a large number of earn
est advocates of reform whose attach
ment to these reforms is much stronger
thar attachment to any party name.
The republican party occupies the
conservative position. That is. it de-
tends those who, having secured unfair
advantage through class legislation,
insist that they shall not be disturbed,
no matter how oppressive their exac-
lions may become.
The democratic party cannot hope to
compete successfully with the repub-
lican party for this support. To win
the support of the ~plutocratic element
OF the country the party would have to
become more plutocratic than the re-
publican party, and 1t could not do this
without losing several times as many
votes as that course would win.
"The democratic party has nothing to
gain by catering to organized and preda-
tory wealth. 1t must not only do with
out such support, but it can strengthen
itself by inviting the open and emphatic
opposition of these elements.
The campaign Just closed shows that
1t is as inexpedient from the standpoint
OF policy as it is wrong from the stand