Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1908-09-18
SPEECH BY COL. MILLER.
Delivered at the Boise Convention
in Nominating Judge AiIshie.


Speech delivered by Col. Allen Miller
1Idaho county in the nomination of
James F. Ailshie for associate Justice
of the supreme court Of the state of
Idaho
Mr.. Chairman and delegates. I re-
greet exceedingly that l am unable to
join my brethren in their ambrosial an
ticipations of an easy and overwhelm-
ing victory in the campaign now on.
Had oratorical fame to lose or politi
cal ambition to serve might possibly
join in the chorus; but as | am wholly
devoid of both and have no anxiety. ex-
cept for the prosperity of my country
and the success of my party, | propose,
even at the risk of mourning your dis
pleasure, to speak what | conceive to
be the actual political condition as it
presents itself to my mind.
The man who whistles to keep his
courage up fools himself or someone
else, but mostly himself.
am neither a prophet nor the son
of prophet; but if read Alright the
shadows.cast by coming events we have
work to do between now and the first
day of November next, other than cast
and count the ballots, if victory perches
on our banners.
Faith in the cause we represent is an
excellent thing to carry around with US.
It is, however, but the froth on the
champagne. The keen and incisive logic
Of Paul warns us that faith without
work availeth nothing; and if you gen
tlemen, the representatives of the re-
publican party of Idaho return to your
homes buoyant and jubilant with the
idea of an easy and overwhelming vic
tory and inspire your constituents with
like sentiment, you may possibly
awake to find that you have been hug
ging a sweet delusion.
The democratic party is not depend
ing upon faith alone in this campaign, /
but upon work as WELL 1t is now en-
gagged in salving over its old sores with /
ointment distilled from the hope of
victory; the hope may prove to be a
delusion and the ointment an irritant
instead of a balm, but still it is a hope;
and hope in the triumph of ones cause,
whether misplaced or not, is an element
of success. Inspired by this hope it is
filling up its depleted ranks on tradit-
ional lines, enlisting the disappointed,
the disgruntled, tho populist, the social
list and the anarchist. These will all be
marshaled against US, led by bright,
brainy man, loaded with a bundle of
contradictory theories of civil govern
ment so nicely assorted as to suit the
palate of each unit of the conglomor
alton and possessed of a conscience so
pliable and so out of correspondence :
with sound judgment as to enable him
to sincerely believe that this hotchpotch {
of contradictory theories is genuine po-
litical philosophy Belief in the right {
and justice of ones cause, even
though erroneous, is another element of
success.
The disappointed and disgruntled
want revenge. The old-line democrats
want strict construction of the constitu-
ton, gloriication of the states and hald
money; the populist wants money coined
from corn stocks and pumpkin vines.
the socialist wants no money at all, and
the anarchist wants all government S
and Bryan pats them all on a
the back and says: God bless you my
God bless you" 1t is a motley a
crowd; very hungry and exceedingly t
thirsty and held together only by the t
power of public plumber The
'ope, however, is sufficiently strong to