The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1906-09-02
Mr.. Bryan'S Program.


Plainly enough, the country is
destined to a serious consideration
of the question of Government own
ership of railroads. There is a good
deal of excitement just now about
il, and there will be no useful dis
cdssion until the invective and hys-
terra are past Then the country
viii sit down to think it over.
1t will learn that every railroad
system in the world, without sig
nifcant exception. was started with
private capital; that the majority
have become or are becoming pub
liclv owned; that no country ever
changed from public to private own
ership: that most of them have
changed from private 10 public
ownership: that countries in which
the railroads are publicly owned
do not find the influence of railroad
employees in politics half so danger
Gus as this country finds the infu-
ence of railroad managers; that "all
the traffic will bear" is the rule
of the rail in only two important
countries; thar those two are Eng
land and the United States, the only
countries of the first class where
private ownership is the unbroken
rule; that public ownership was
forced upon other countries after
they had vainly tried otherwise TO
remedy the same evils of private
ownership that this country is try
ing to remedy.
These are just few facts. To
set them down does not involve
support of public ownership as ap-
piled to this country.
Now. as 10 Mr.. Bryan's declara-
ton for public ownership. A great
many political leaders" are against
him Just now. But the whole kit
and Doodle of them don't do half
the leading that William r. Hearst
. does. Mr. BrYan has Just caught
up with Hearst, and. instead of real
fling it,. turns back and shouts over
his shoulder a warning TO Mr..
Roosevelt To keep off the Bryan
preserves of 1896! It's really a good
deal of "a foot race among these
precious radicals-Hearst in the
lead. Bryan next, and Roosevelt.
coming along in the rear, leading a
somewhat unwilling elephant by
the nose and occasionally having to
prod it. If it weren't for his han
dicap in this regard there's no tell
ing but he might be leading.
The people are strung all along
by the roadside Some of them lag
behind. some few have got ahead
even of Hearst. These call them
selves socialists. There is "a big and
somewhat motley body neck and
neck with Hearst: they stood still
long enough to be counted in New
York last fall, but the count wasn't
honestly reported Then there is a
great multitude that keeps pretty
close step with Bryan, albeit some
have not yet quite got themselves
nerved 10 take the big hurdle that
ne recently made. And behind all
4has. = rL. ,...-- LEI. D.--o..-.1.
putting pretty hard in the effort to
keep up; some of them discouraged
about doing it, \ good many in
this company are really too fat for
the pace, hut they are doing their
best because there doesn't seem to
be anybody else to follow.
Which of these three lunches Is
the largest? The Bryan and Hearst
foilowings naturally coaIesce. and it
is hard TO see where the line should
be drawn between them Likewise
the line Of demarcation between the
Bryan and Roosevelt sections of the
human stream is dim. If the Hearst
runners fall back and become
merged with the Bryan company,
the fat and rather short-winded
army of Roosevelt may have it's
hands very fun to deal with them
two years hence. But if the Hearst
and Bryan forces find themselves
unable to unite. the Roosevelt crowd
win run over them while they stop
TO quarrel, and one more victory
viii have been credited up to the
tortoise as against the hare.
Meanwhile, politicians who are
wise-especially Democratic poll
ticians-win not be too loud or
ready with their denunciation of
the new Bryan program, but VIII sit
close and study the tendencies of
this human stream, stretched along
the highway of Public Opinion, I'M
I'll they are a bit more certain how
u is going 10 behave.
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