Truth. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1901-1908, 1906-09-15

d. Hill ndQ Une supreme dSSuTdnCe W
condem public ownership on the
ground that "the actions brought
against Federal department officials
and the Investigations found necessary
within the last few years" had dis
closed "a state of morals in public life
that no actual railway magnate would
tolerate in his employ" This on the
heels of the Union Pacific dividend
scandel, with officials of dozen rail
roads under Indictment for variety
of criminal offenses, and just after the
staff of the premier railroad of Amer
lea, the Pennsylvania, had been found
to be reeking with bribery to an extent
that would have damned any public
administration.
If there had been nothing more than
this to trouble him Mr.. Bryan nigh
have felt that his course was reason
ably clear. But his railroad policy W.
subject to attack not from the friends
of the corporations, but from the un-
terrified Democrats of the Southern
States, who had given him most of his
electoral votes in his previous cam
paigns. There were two reasons for
Southern hostility to Government own
ership. One was the old State Rights
feeling which Mr.. Bryan had vainly
tride to conciliate by his advice of
leaving the local lines to the States.
The other was the sensitive dread of
anything that might interfere with
local control of the negro question.
With all the trunk lines controlled by
the national Government the South
erners feared that it would be impos-
,.I 10
| rules rules on through trains. These
two considerations threatened to de
prive Mr.. Bryan of his most loyal and
most powerful support.
| Under this pressure from his ole
friends Mr.. Bryan appeared, If moi
daunted, at least impelled to prudence
In some of his later speeches he ig
nored the Government ownership idea
in others he took pains to explain thai
he had not been expressing his per
sonal opinions, and not attempting t.
formulate a platform for the party. He
retracted nothing, however, and a
Bridgeport he said:
81 find now that some of the eminen
gentlemen who wanted me to be ;
candidate are not so anxious now t.
have me take that office.
81 would rather have the approva
of my own conscience on public
question than the approval of ever,
other person in the United States"
Mr.. Bryan had taken pains form tn
beginning to emphasize his belief tina
the great issue was that of the suppress
sion of trusts, and he had treated tn
public ownership of railroads Chief
as a means toward that end. He ha,
also taken isue with President Roose
welt on the question of the relation o
the tariff to the trusts. The Presiden
had always insisted that the two ha
no connection. Mr.. Bryan said at Mao
ison Square Garden that while it ca
not be said that absolute free trad
would prevent the existence of an
monopoly, it can be said that man
monopolies owe their existence to tn
tariff, and that those which do not ow
their existence to the tariff enjoy fror
the tariff the power to eXtort from tn
American people, He believed tina
If the President had the power to pu
the products of monopoly on the fire
list most of the manufacturers woul
keep out of oppressive combinations.
Not the latest of the troubles @
the convalescent Democracy is tn
enigmatical attitude of Mr.. William +
Hearst. At first Mr.. Hearst held aloe
from the Bryan reception. He finall
occupied box at Madison Spuar