The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-09-13
Local and Personal.


 the democratic party should resolutely i oppose any and every attempt to au-
 thorze national incorporation or char tering for trading or manufacturing en- terprises Congress has control over in- terstate commerce and it Is the only body
 that can deal effectively and efficiently with interstate commerce, but to con- troi interstate commerce, it is not nec- essary that it should create corporations that can override state laws. The demo- cratic national platform of 1900 proposed a national remedy for the trusts en- tirely consistent with the preservation Of state remedies. It suggested licensed
 system-the license to permit corpora
 ton to do business outside of the state
 of its origin upon compliance with the conditions of the license, but the license
 would not permit it to do business in any
 other state except upon compliance with
 the conditions provided by the state. In
 other words 1t would be such license as
 is now granted for the sale of liquor.
 When federal license is as now granted for the sale of liquor 1t does not carry
 with it any immunity from the laws of the state in which the license lives. The same reasoning should be applied to the insurance question and to all other ques- tions which involve remedial legislation.
 Must Not Impair States Power. "No advocate of centralization should be permitted to impair the power Of the various states of business done within their borders under the pretense that It
 is necessary to transfer the power to the national capital and no democrat should
 oppose federal legislation when the pow CTS of the several states are properly safe guarded.
 q have mentioned those of insurance and the trust question, but there are
 many subjects which involve the issue a,ad 1fral za
 is natural that the democratic party should advocate the election of senators by a direct vote of the people for this reform would remain a barrier erected
 between the people and their representa- lives in the Senate. This provision or
 the constitution was compromise pe tween those who trusted the people, and those who doubted the capacity of the people for f-government. There Is no longer reason for doubt and experience shows that the United States Senate has become the bulwark Of corporate inter- ests It cannot be brought into sympa- thetic touch with the people until the method of election is so changed as to
 make the members of the Senate respon-
 sible directly to the people.
 Growing In Popular Favor. "rhe initiative and the referendum are growing in popular favor because they increase the control of the people over
 their own affairs and make the govern ment more responsive to the people who
 support it.
 'It should be the purpose of the dem ocratic party by it's constant effort to bring the government into harmony with
 those who live under 1t and to make 1t reflect more and more their intelligence, virtue and patriotism. In proportion as the democratic party trusts the people and protects them, if will win the con fdence and support of the people and no one can doubt the final triumph of such a party without doubting the correctness and growth of principles of free govern ment"