The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1904-06-25

last week. named a solid instructed
Parker delegation to the Nationa
Democratic Convention which meet:
liz St. Louis early next month. The
delegates are pledged to work for his
nomination by the party. and can alb
solve themselves from these instruc
tions only by a t~wo-thirds vote Of the
entire delegation.
The convention proved to be the
most notable gathering in Mississippi
history for several years, delegates
being present from every county in
the State. All the big and brainy men
of Mississippi were there, and most OF
them made ringing Democratic
speeches when called upon by friends
and admirers among the delegations
composing the convention. In short,
the meeting proved to be an old-time
Democratic love feast, and the work
OF the body flowed as smoothly and
quietly as the waters on the bosom
of a placid river. No hitch occurred
at any time in the proceedings of the
convention.
The platform deals particularly with
national issues, and was written by
that matchless leader and idol Of Mis-
sissippi Democracy-John Sharp Will
llamg. of Yazoo-and it proclaims in
words which cannot be misunderstood
he principles OF Mississippi Democ-
racy in the coming campaign. The
platform was read in a clear and dis
tinct voice by Mr.. Williams himself,
and was adopted unanimously. 1t is
as follows:
The Platform.
The Democracy of Mississippi, in
convention assembled, renews and en-
phasizes its repeated expressions Of
confidence in the Democracy OF the
country and the expression of its firm
belief that those fundamental prin-
ciples of republican government, as
expressed and exempliied by Thomas
Jefferson, in contradistinction to the
governmental principles espoused and
adopted by Alexander Hamilton and
by the Federalist party, which he Gre
ated and dominated, lie at the basis OF
all good government. In the appllca'
ton of these principles to present
conditions, the Democracy OF Missis'
sissippi favors:
First-Economy in Federal admins
tration, and to that end cutting off all
unnecessary and imperialistic eX-
Venditures, the Former as soon as
possible after our access to power
and the latter gradually, but surely
and safely. Government has no indie
pendent source of revenue and every
dollar unnecessarily and unjustly
spent is a dollar wrung by taxation
from the citizens and is, moreover, a
dollar DETECTED from use in some bet
ter way.
Second-The enforcement of hon
csty in public service, and to that end
a thorough legislative investigation OF
those executive departments OF the
government already known to TEEN
with corruption, as well as other de-
partments suspected of harboring cor
rupti0n, and the punishment OF ascer-
tanned corruptionists without fear or
favor or regard 10 persons. 10 broader
tu~rtherance of that end the Federal gov
eminent should not enter into con
tract with trusts or unlawful comblna-
tons in restraint of interstate trade
and in violation of law. We believe
that n of the best methods of pro-
curing nocom and honesty in pub
lie service is to have public officials,
from the occupant of the White House
to the lowest of them, return, as near
1y as may be, to J~effersonian sim
plicity of living. A Democratic presl-
dent will so set that fashion.
Third-We favor the nomination
and election of a president trained
to the ways of the Constitution, who
shall, set his face sternly against ex-
eeutiye %usurpation of legislative and
judicial functions, whether that usur-
nation be yelled under the guise of ex-
ecutive construction of existing laws or
whether it take refuge in the tyrants
pleas Of necessity and superior Wis
dom
Fcurth-A wise, conservative and
busidess-like revision and reduction
of the tariff by the friends of the
mas1es and common veal and not by
the friends of its abuses, its extor-
tions and its determinations; keep
ing ia view the ultimate end of equal
jty Il burdens and equalities of OPP
portuyIties and the constitutional pur-
poses of raising a revenue by taxa
ton; and keeping also in view, as
men IL common sense should, existing
conditions, however w%rongfully
brought about, and the danger to
cause itself too sudden and revo-
lutiouary a reversal of policy.
we should bear in. mind, in short,
these two things: First, the general
principle that the sole right deriva-
ton of the power of taxation is the
support of The Federal government,
econon,ically. effectively and constitu-
III