New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1907-07-24
BRYAN CHANGES HIS TONE.
Government Ownership, He Says,
Is Not an Immediate Issue.
Regulation Must First be Given a
Trial Under Favorable
Circumstances.
Republican Party, He Asserts, Is
ImpOtent to Deal With
Present Issues.

In statement issued recently by
William Jennings Bryan, the peerless
one declares plainly that he will not
try to force government ownership Of
railroads as an issue in the next cam
paign. Here is what he says:
Government ownership is not an
immediate issue. A large majority Of
the people still hope for effective'regu.
lation. While they so hope they will
not consider ownership. While many
Democrats believe, and Mr.. Bryan is
one Of them, that public ownership OF
railways is the ultimate solution of the
problem, still those who believe that
the public will finally. in self-defense,
be driven to ownership, recognize til at
regulation must be tried under the
most favorable circumstances before
the masses will be ready to try a more
radical remedy.
''Regulation cannot be sufficiently
tried within the next year. There is
no desire anywhere to make govern
ment ownership an issue in 1908. Mr..
Bryan fully agrees with those who be-
lieve that it would be unwise to turn
attention from regul alton, on which
the people are ready to act, to govern
ownership, on which the people are
not ready to act.
"To inject the government owner
ship question into the next campaign
would simply give representatives of
the railroads chance to dodge the is
sue of regulation and deceive the
public.
$50 far the railroads have been sue
cessful in preventing effective federal
regulation, and state regulation has as
a rule been restrained by the United
States courts. It is about twenty
years since the interstate commerce
commission was created. It required
about ten years for the courts to find
out that the powers conferred were in
years to secure an amendment. The
railroads fought the amendment at
every step and the president was finally
forced to compromise with the railroad
in the senate in order
to secure their support.
Given that amendment, secured with
tremendous effort, falls short of what
it should be. It aims to stop passes
and rebates. The railroads profit
pecuniarily both by the stoppage Of
rebates and by the prohibition of
passes, but extortionate rates still ex-
ist. State legislation for the reduc-
ton of rates has resulted IN an agita-
ton on the part of the railroads for
legislation that will deprive the state
of authority and centralize all rate
legislation in congress.
''The Democratic party must meet
the issue presented; it must resist the
encro achments upon the authority of
the states. It must insist upon the
exercise of federal power for the regu-
lation of interstate commerce and it
must insist upon the exercise Of state
authority for the exercise of all of the
power vested in the state.
''This question has grown in i'm
portance during the last year and its
prominence will be increased if any
attempt is made to impair state
authority.
'The Republican party is as impo-
tent to regulate the railroads as it is
to exterminate the trusts and to reform
the tariff.
1.-THE Democratic party has in three
national camp aigns demanded effec-
tive railroad legislation, while the
Republican national platforms have
been silent upon the subject. The