River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1906-08-23
OPENING SPEECH
Gov. Davidson Declares His
Position on State Issues
STANDS ON MIS- RECORD

Il am glad to be with you tonight
and renew my acquaintance with the
good people of Milwaukee. For more
i than twenty-five years have enjoy
4 ed personal business relations with
many of your wholesale merchants.
! 1t would please me exceedingly If
had the time to form the acquaint-
ance of the multitude of workers
whose brain and Drawn have made
this one of the, noted manufacturing
Centers of the World.
Il do not feel that Wisconsin is in
. condition that needs alarm its citi-
zens, or that something has got to be
done, and done quickly, to save the
state from destruction. | am neither
alarmed, nor an alarmist, and see no
good reason for attempting to fright
en- the people of the state who have
this whole matter in their own hands.
Whatever they want, and whatever
they demand, they can have, for there
is none to deny them.
eff they elect good men, and strong
men, and devoted men to the legis-
lature; men who not only have minds
of their own, but a disposition to
think for themselves, and pledge
these men to make the laws that are
necessary to be made, holding them
TO accountability for their steward
ship, the affairs of the state will be
all right, and the people will get what
they want in the way of legislation.
"And | want to say TO you that l
believe that whatever is wrong in the
government of the state, and in the
government OF the citles of the state,
and in the relations of the corpora
tion-big and little-in the relations
of the railroads, and of the numerous
small public service corporations
with the government, is because the
PEOPLE have permitted it to be. For
people have their ballots, and they
have, in our state, the selection Of
their own candidates for office.
'They must control by their ballots
or they can not control at all; and
representative government must
stand or fall by that test. Talk OF
physical revolution is the idle talk
Of the demagOgue, the anarchist, the
dangerous citizen.
men who live in a self-governing
community have no excuse for sitting
down and complaining when the work
that is theirs to do is left undone.
Men find fault with themselves, and
with what is their duty to do, but
leave undone, when they find fault
with their owr government,
People Must Govern State.
'The people IF the state govern thu
state-not the corporations, unless
they are permitted to do it; not the
machine unless it is permitted to
do it, not the boss, unless he is Per.
mitted to do it.
81 have confidence in the people Of
Wisconsin,; in their intelligence; in
their stability Of character; in their
patriotism and devotion to the we'll
being Of the state. believe them to
be pretty generally honest, whether
| they agree with me in all things or
not-for l make no claim to infa1li-
bility and acknowledge that there
may be such a --sometimes-
that | may be mistaken In myself
ct believe that the people of Wis
consin, Of whatever political affilia-
| tions or factional differences, are, by
large majority, in favor of honest
government and of keeping their gov
eminent in their own hands. No line
Of cleavage can be drawn through
the republican party dividing 1t, as it
| has been divided, on the issue Of the
right Of the people to run their own
government.
81 have not found it to be necessary
| to repeat to the people of Wisconsin
on every possible occasion that I be-
! lieve in their right to govern them
selves, for have presumed that they
know how / stand on that as well
IN VYnopxz Ofbap ruocIfOna
| 81 am not a recent convert to the
| doctrine that the state has the pow
er to control every corporation it has
created or that 1t permits to transact
business within its borders.
Taxation Reform Not New.
"The movement for an equalization
( of the tax burden, and for the regula-
ton of the corporations in Wisconsin,
dates back much farther than three
or four years age, and l supported
| these reforms before they had become
as popular as they are today. Twelve
! years ago, as member Of the assem-
bly,, / gave my voice and my vote for
bills to regulate express companies;
relating to taxing railroads; to estab-
1ish railroad commission; providing
an income tax; creating the office of
bank examiner; to regulate mutual in
surance companies; to prevent un-
! just discrimination by insurance com
panies; to tax express companies, to
regulate telephone charges, and to
create tax commission.
"At the next session of the legisla-
ture, / gave such support as | was
able to bills providing for the estab-
lishment of a board of railroad COM
missioners, with power to prescribe
rates; to authorize and direct the in
/ vestigation into the returns made by
the railway companies of gross earn
| ings which were the basis for taxa
/ ton; to provide for the taxation of
owners and the lessees of palace cars
and sleeping cars; to define express
companies and prescribe the method
of taxation and the rate of charges;
relating to telegraph companies; to
regulate railroads; relating to main
tanning railway stations, and relating
.oi1vaaJ vronorfxy ond