Omaha daily bee., 1906-10-30
DEMOCRATS and RAILROADS
Bvidenos is Plain Of Hard and Fast
Tsup for the Campaign
ONLY PROMISE FOR FUSIOS-sUcctss
Hope 60 Capture Lower House Of
LeRisIature, Elect rhompron sem
atoF and Block Legislation
DistaatefuI 20 Railroads.
Lon : SEQ correspondenLl


LINCOLN. Oct. ss.--(special) THE dis
closures Of The Bee Of the hard ana fast
,1iance between the railroads and the
.esmocratio political machine tends to prove
sphat has been manifest for some time
and is confirmed by a great many features
and incidents OF the campaign. Democrats
On close touch with Chairman Allen do not
diaguise their expectation OF help, both
moral and financial, from the combined
railroads and the various corporate inter
eats that are compelled TO train with-ttrgEn
IN fact. while the democratic candidates
snd orators have been harping on their
anti-pase plank and their 2-eent fare prom
Use, It Is an open secret that the demo-
oFats have had no difnculty in getting
transportation from all the railroads for
campaign purposes, although probably not
in the form OF the usual passes. The DEM
ocratic headquarters here. for example. has
been for some time collecting names Of
voters absent from home willing to cast
n ballot for the democratic ticket pro-
viding It costs them nothing to travel. and
II is notorious that democratic commit
tse would have no funds to care for such
voters unless the railroads furnished free
tickets. or rebsted the money that might
be paid for them.
There r. every evidence Of a complete
understanding between Chairman Allen
and the railroad political wirepullers al
most from the start. The defeat Of Berge
and the naming Of shallenberger IN his
place was an open bid for railroad help,
and the letter OF Allen instructing the DEM
ocratic editors and candidates to line up
with the railroads against terminal taxa
ton. TO which they were previously COM
mitted, illustrates how tight the railroad
grip H. A we'll known democratic party
worker. who usually speaks by the card,
was talking the situation over conidentially
the other day In this fashion;
Only Hope with Railroads.
There's no use Disgusting the fact that
our only hope is from railroad assistance.
Everybody knows il would he impossible
70 elect any democrat on the state ticket
or turn the Legislature into q democratic
majority unless the railroads put their
shoulders to the wheel for us, and not
only do that. but whip into line all the
dependent corporations that look to them
for favors.
we are making the best tight we can
taking all the help we can get We re-
alize that II is an uphill job and we have
little hope of beating Sheldon OF any
others on the state ticket who get theil
full party vote 1t is hard proposition
too, to capture the state senate but We
think that we can get majority OF Tho
house il the railroads do the right thing
OF course. we are not going to DO any
thing that would drive them away
from us.
II understand the railroad fellows have
81 all figured out this way-that they can
beat sheldon anyway nor wipe out thu
republican majority in the senate. bu
that they can make the house democratic
and thus accomplish what they want Thu
legislature would in that way have
democratic majority on joint ballot, Civ
ing the United States senatorship TO the.
candidate W, IL Thompson, but on mat
= ters OF legislation the house would Kill
of all the Objectionable bills that com'
from the senate and the senate be worked
20 knock out all the house bills that tn
railroads do not like II Sheldon is eleote'
nothing would get up to the governo
where he would have chance to take
stand This. at any rate, is the program
that has been mapped out and will b
followed unless some OF the wheels Sill
their. cogs."
bid for Railroad Votes.
The democrats are making a strong ei
1ort TO get the employees Of the railroads
as well as their bosses. to vote the demo
cratic ticket in Nebraska this year. A
article which appeared in the Fremou
Tribune discussing the free pass questio
and incidentally arguing that there Is II
herently no good reason why the familie
OF railroad men should have free trans
portation any more than the families {
grocery clerks should have free grocerie
has been reprinted IN typewritten forl
and sent out in envelopes labeled ''TslbC
and Allen" and probably paid for by IL
Missouri Pacific, with the evident pu
pose to make railroad employees belle,
that is part Of the republican state pla
form. OF course, It is no part Of the pla