Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1906-09-20

the Louisiana delegation in congress
voted for the Dingley tariff law, and it
is now customary for Congressman
Broussard, of the Third District of that
State, to admit in public political ad-
dresses that the present tariff is the
direct cause of existing prosperity, and
to solemnly declare that he was, in fact,
the author of the bill, though he gave,
as he says, the honor to Governor Ding
ley as political courtesy. He was not
even member of the committee that
drafted the BILL My fear of Democrat
ic control, repeat, rests largely in the
fact that even the leaders of the party
fail to agree on any important matter,
and openly disagree on nearly every
fundamental principle.
'Tn 1896 the Democratic party de-
clared in favor Of the free and unlimit-
ed coinage Of silver at the ratio of six
teen to one with gold without the aid or
consent of any other nation on earth.
Does any one believe that the party,
had it been successful at the polls, could
have Incorporated that declaration into
the statute law of the land? do not.
The declaration was repeated, however,
in the platform of 1900, but omitted in
1904. Judge Parker supported Mr.. Bry-
an on his free silver platform in two
campaigns, but hastened to announce
by telegram his adherence to the gold
standard Immediately after his nomina-
tion in 1904, and thereafter Mr.. Bryan
supported him. My fear of Democratic
control, I repeat, rests largely in the
fact that the party is not united on any
fundamental principle, and because the
leaders of the party hold their solemnly
avowed convictions subject to momen-
tary revision.
"Thomas Jefferson is universally rec
ognized as the patron saint of the DEM
ocratic party. Those loudest in protes-
tation of discipleship of the great Jeffer-
son quote him as being in favor of the
least possible centralization of autho-
rity, and of the greatest possible local
or State jurisdiction. He is quoted as
being opposed to governmental inter
ferance with individual enterprise, and
also to ACKNOWLEDGEMENT with
anything that can be legitimately ac-
complished by the States. He is sup
posed to represent the very embodiment
of anti-paternalism.
"For fully fifty years, however, the
avowed disciples of Mr.. Jefferson have
both favored and voted for the erection
of Government buildings in every Dem
ocratic district in the land, while Demo-
cratic states have invariably ceded to
the Federal Government sole jurisdic-
tion over the sites on which these build
ings have been erected. These disciples
of Jefferson have also voted to take
money from the Federal treasury with
which to dredge rivers, deepen chan
nels, construct jetties, and erect levees
whenever any part of such appropria-
tions was to be expended in Democratic
States.
''Nor is this all. The professed dis
ciples of Thomas Jefferson made all pos
sible haste last winter to place them
selves on record as favoring government
tai supervision of railroads and govern
mental determination of railway rates;
and they did this in the face of the right
of every State to control railroads and
fx rates within the State.
''Nor is this all. During the last ses-
sion of Congress the professed adher-
ents Of Thomas Jefferson well-nigh un-
animously voted to place the examina-
ton of food products generally, and of
meat products in particular, under Fed
eral supervision. They not only sought
to give the Federal government author
ity, but they voted to direct the admin
istrative branch of the Federal govern
ment to go into the several states and
actually oversee, supervise and control
the sIalghtering and packing Of meat
within the several states.
IF this be not Capitalization, then
centralization is impossible. Of course
Republicans voted for these measures.