Los Angeles herald., 1906-09-14
THE PLATFORM


this fall Is clean-cut, absolutely defined
and unmlstakable. The one issue is
Shall the people Of California throw Of
the yoke OF Republican railroad ma
chine domination, Hearst rottenness
graft and Doodle and elect their owl
Officers and run their own government
or shall they supinely sit back and turr
over the state once more to the rail.
roads, the machine, the Hearst bun
combe and the Schmitz-Ruef looters?
The two parties stand squarely or
these issues. The Republicans are fol
a renewal OF the present status, only
more so. The Democrats are for Q
full, complete and eternal revolution
freedom, equality and decency. Their
platform speaks this in every line and
word.
There is not warped plank i'm the
Democratic state PLATFORM. not plank
that shows a crack, knot or sign Of
being worm-eaten. 1t is a platform
built Of clear stuff throughout, and Is
warranted to stand the stress of the
political campaign without an indica-
ton of flaw or fracture
Live issues only are embodied in the
Sacramento platform. There is nothing
in 1t even suggestive of the stereotyped
platitude and fapdoodle that are chief
constituents of the rotten-plank Re-
publican railroad platform knocked to-
gether last week at Santa Cruz.
To Los Angeles readers of the plat
form 1t is particularly pleasing to
notice the distinct impress of local in
fiuence, indicating the zeal and alert
ness of the delegates from this city
and county. The resolution concerning
the Owens river water project is es-
pecially gratifying:
1--WE pledge the support of our candi-
dates for any measure advantageous
to and desired by the city of Los An
geles and surrounding country assist
ing in the conveyance of the waters of
Owens river to Los Angeles county"
Another plank of special concern to
this section is in line with earnest APP
peals that have long been made by our
shippers, particularly growers Of citrus
fruits. That is for the right of ship
pers to route through cars as their in
terests demand. The planks calling for
the construction of q system of ma
cadamized roads throughout the state, y
also the demand that rates for freight
and fares of Misunderstanding corpora
tions be reduced to the basis of net
revenue" also are highly pleasing to
Southern California interests,
The planks relating to national af-
fairs are all commendable. The
pledge of the California Democracy to
Bryan, in the next national convention,
is merely a formal expression of uni
versal Democratic sentiment in the
state.
Direct nominations by the people,
without the intervention of nominat-
ing conventions" are demanded by the
adoption of the direct primary system.
That plan would at least cripple the
operation of such machine ticket man
ufacture as was witnessed at the re-
cent Republican county convention at
Venice. One of the planks also favors
the election of United States senators
by direct vote of the people, and pend
ing the adoption of that plan calls for
1.-The extension of the direct norninat-
ing primary to that Office"
The question of public ownership in
communities is placed upon the broad
Democratic level of home rule. The
plank rela ting thereto favors 1.-The
passage of such laws as may be nec-
essary to vest each municipality in
the state with power to own and oper-
ate all and every kind of public
utility" In respect to the broader
question of public operation, it is de-
clared that wherever private mon
opoly is inevitable, public monopoly is
the only desirable alternative"
A drastic measure, in keeping with
public sentiment, is favored for curp-
ing trust monopoies. Democratic leg
islators are pledged to support
state law ''penalizing the maintenance
of monopolies, trusts and combinations
in restraint of trade and commerce"
That means making it state prison
crime for trust magnates and all others
to fix and regulate the price of neces-
saries of life or other useful commodi-
ties"
All the features of the platform
should be thoughtfuIly considered by
voters, and readers of The Herald will
do well to preserve copies of it for
reference during the campaign.