Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1906-09-12
! BRYAM'S GREAT new YORK SPEECH.
Trusts Paramount Issue in America--People
Must Rule or Nation Falls.

900

NEST ihtSiesNs VI Tue lnTee pdEtieS "
these disputes viz: the employers, the
employee and the public. The employe can
not be turned over to the employer to be
dealt AZ. with as the employer may please
Ihe question sometimes asked, Can !
not conduct my business to suit myselfg'
Is plausible one but when man in con
Quoting his business attempts to arbitrarily
fix the conditions under which hundreds of
employees are TO live, and to determine the
future of thousands of human beings,
answer without hesitation that he has no
right to conduct his own business In such
a way as to deprive his employees of their
rights 10 life, liberty and the pursuit of hap
piness.
10 support this position need only refer
to the laws regulating the safety of mines,
the factory laws fixing the age Mt which
children can he employed and usury laws
establishing the rate of interest. The eff
fort of the employer to settle differences
bitter him against those who work for him
and to estrange them from hinlz--a deplora-
p'e condition, from my standpoint
But u II is unwlsc to make the EN-.
ployer the sole custodian Of the rights and
interests Of the employees. 1t is equally un-
wise TO give the employees uncontrolled au-
thority over the rights and interests of the
| employer The employees are no more to be
trusted to act unseltishly and disinterested-
~ than the employers. In their zeal to
secure Il present advantage they may not
only do Injustice, but even forfeit larger
future gain.
The strike. the only weapon of the en-
ploye at present, is a two-edged sword and
may tn1ure the workman as much the
| employer, and, even when wholly success.
| full it is apt to leave a ranking in the
bosom of the wage Garner that should not
| be there.
Society, moreover, has something at stake,
| as well as the employer and employees, for
| there can be no considerable strike without
| considerable loss to the public. Society,
| therefore, Is Justified In demanding that the
| differences between capital and labor shall
| n
nent. impartial board Is created, to which
| either party of an Industrial dispute may
| appeal, or which may be relied upon to en-
| force the finding. II there is compulsory
| submission to Investigations. II is not nee
| cssary that there shall be compulsory ac-
ceptanee Of the decision, for a full and fair
! investigation will in almost every case
| bring about settlement.
| No reference 10 the labor question is COM
| pete that does not include some mention
| of what Is known as government by In
| Is to evade trial by jury, 1t Is really an
| attack upon the jury system and ought to
| arouse Il unanimous protest. So long as the
mcanest thief Is guaranteed trial by jury
4 a Jury ought not to be denied to wage
| Farmers. However, as the writ is usually
| invoked In case of n strike, the Importance
OF the subject would be very much reduced
| by the adoption of n system of arbtra.
| tion. because arbitration would very mucli
reduce. even If it did not entirely relieve,
| the probability of 4 strike.
Just another word In regard 10 the labor.
| ing man. The struggle for an ei.ht-hour
| day Is an International struggle and It is
| sure TO be settled In favor of the working.
mems contention The benefits of the labor
4 saving machine have not been distributed
with equity. The producer has enormously
| multiplied his capacity, but so far the own
| er of the machine has received too much
of the increase and the laborer too little.
| Those who oppose the eigit-hour day do
| II, am convinced. more because of ignor-
ance OF conditions than because of lnck of
sympathy with those who toll. The re-
tory has separated the husband from his
4 wife, and the father from his children,
| while the growth of our cities has put an
| increasing distance between the home and
1 the Workshop
| Then, too, more is demanded of the Ia.
boring man now than formerly; he is n
| citizen as well as laborer and must have
| lie is to be an intelligent sovereign 10
| drive him from his bed TO his task and
/ from his task back TO his bed Is to de.
| prlve the family of his companisllp. So
| cieiy of his services and politics of his in.
| tuence.
says Party liz Now United
On the Money Question.
| Thus far. ! have dwelt upon subjects
| which may not be regarded as strictly par
tisan but y am sure that you will pardon
| me If In this presence betray my Inter.
| est in those. policies for which the Demo
| cratic party stands. have not Ind an
opportunity to make a Democratic speech
for almost a year, and no one-nOt even
n political enemS--could be so cruel as to
| occasion. hIi'l
Our opponents have derived not only par
| tisan pleasure, but also partisan advantage
| from the division caused In our party, by
the money question. They ought not, there
| fore, begrudge us the satisfaction that we
| lind In the fact that unexpected conditions
have removed the cause of our differences
and permitted us to present united front
| on present issues.
| The unlocked for and unprecedented in
crease 10 the production of gold has brought
| victory to both the advocates of gold and
the ADVOCATE of bmetallism-the former
| keeping the gold standard, which they want
led, and the latter securing the larger VOL
ume of money, for which they commended.
We who favor bimetailism are satisfied with
4 our victory II the friends of recommendation
are satisfied with theirs and we can invite
| them to contest of zeal and endurance In
the effort to restore to the people the rights
which have been gradually taken from them
| by the trusts
Campaign Contributions
r. from TRUSTS Arc Scored.
The Investigations which have been in
| progress during the past year have disclosed
| the business methods of those who a few
| years ago resented any inspection of their
schemes and hid their rascality under high
4 sounding phrases. These Investigations have
i also disclosed the source of the enormous
| campaign funds which have been used to
debauch elections and corrupt the ballot.
The people see now what they should
| have seen before, namely, that no party
| can eXterminate the trusts SO long as it
| owes its political success to campaign con.
tributions secured from the trusts The
| great corporations do not contribute their
| money to any party except for immunity
| expressly promised Or clearly Implied.
1 No important advance can be made I'M
| III this baneful influence Is eliminated, and
1 hope that the Democratic party Will not
IonIy challenge the Republican party to bring
forward effective legislation on this sub
| ject, but will set an example by refusing to
receive campaign contributions from cor
porations
Contributions should be Individual not
corporate. and no party can afford to re-
ceive contributions even from individuals
| when the acceptance of these contributions
secretly pledges the party to! a course which
1 1t cannot openly avow. z
In other words, politics should be honest,
and l mistake political conditions in Amer
| lea If they do not presage Improvement In
| the conduct of campaigns.
| Trusts Are Paramount
/ Issue In Next Campaign.
| While men may diner. as to the, relative
Importance of issues, and while the next
Congress will largely shape the lines upon
1 will be fought, think II Is safe to say
| that at present the paramount issue In the
| minds Of large majority of the people is
| the Trust issue.
Il congratulate President Roosevelt upon
| the steps which he has taken to enforce
/ the antitrust law, and my ratification is
| not lessened by the fact that he has fol-
lowed the Democratic rather than the Re-
| publican platform In every advance he has
/ made.
| The trouble is that the Republican party
| is not in n position to apply effective and
| thorough-going reforms because 1t has bnl
| up through special legislation the very
4 abuses which need to be eradicated.
| Trust, as nm Institution,
Has Few Open Defenders.
There must be no installing of the issue
| and no confusing of the line of battle.
i Our motto must be- "a private mo-
| nopoly is indefensib!e and intolerable,' and
| our plan of attack must contemplate the
/ total and complete overthrow of the mo-
nopoly principle In industry.
| We need not quarrel over remedies. We
/ must show ourselves willing to support any
remedy which promises substantial adyan.
tage to the people in their warfare against
monopoly.
Something is to be expected from the
enforcement of the criminal clause of the
| Sherman antitrust law, but this law must
| be enforced, not against a few trusts, as at
| present, but against all trusts, and the aim
must be to imprison the guilty, not merely
| to recover n fine.
We need. therefore, new legislation, and
-