The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1908-10-02
Bryan NOT CHANGEABLE.
Has Been Advocating Various Reforms
ALI His Life.

! All his Lie.
In speech a few days ago Judge
Taft accused Mr.. Bryan of being un-
stable and of abandoning issues In
reply Mr., Bryan said:
II began with the tariff question
% years ago, and l have been a tar
if reformer all these years. MrTaft
! is just beginning to see the necessity
for tariff reform.
Il began advocating the direct cleo
ton of senators as early as 1890, and
have been advocating it ever since
nounces that he is personally inclined
to this. This, so far as 1 know, is his
first utterance in favor of this reform
and he makes it 10 years after 1 began
work for it.
81 helped to draw the income tax
law of 1894, and have been an advocate
admits that the principle is sound.
Thus he comes to my position after
II years of waiting.
II said in 1898 that the FfIipinos
ought to have their independence. We
declared 1t to be the paramount issue
in 1900, and I have ever since insist
GU luutpcuUcuCS VI Luc
Filipinos and of an immediate decla-
ration of the governments intention.
Mr.. Taft has this year admitted that
the people must ultimately have indie
pendence, although he postpones the
day for at least two generations. I
have maintained my position. He has
come around to it.
II have also discussed the Philip
pine question in this campaign and
called attention to the fact that Mr..
Taft made mistake of $114,000,000
in his estimate of the cost of imper-
ialism. In his notification speech he
put the cost at $6,000,00O a year,
whereas the increase in the army and
navy alone amounts to more than
s12O,OO0,0OO.
Con the railroad question he has
expressed himself as strongly as
have. He has said, and the President
also has said, that government owner
ship will follow if the railroads pre-
vent regulation. l have said the same
thing. I do not desire government
ownership. 1 hope that the railroads
will permit regulation. Our position
only differs in that he has more faith
than have in the willingness of the
railroads to be regulated, but we agree
that the subject of ownership is one
that cannot be determined until eff
fective regulation has been tried, SO
that ownership is not an issue, and I
have never sought to make it an issue.
HE spends some time on the money
question. The money question has
been taken out of politics because the
discoveries of gold have
given the increase which was de-
manded by the Republican party as
well as by the Democratic party. Mr..
Mckinley voted for tree coinage when
he was in Congress, and the Repub1i-
can platform of 1896 contained a
promise of international bimetallism.
The elimination of the money question
is not due to Republican legislation,
but to an increase in the discovery
Of gold, which has given an impetus
to business throughout the whole
world.
"Mr. Taft cannot escape from the
issues. Will he define his position
on the tariff question, on the labor
question, on the trust question and
on the other issues that are presented
In this campaign? He will not be
permitted to run away from them. He
has accepted the nomination of his
party; now let him take the people
into his confidence and interpret his
platform so that the public will know
where he stands and what he intends
to do.
IF he prefers to delve into the
past, rather than meet the issues of
the present, will be explain the Ben
guet Railway in the Philippines and
the perpetual franchises that he want
ed to fasten upon the Filipinos with
a perpetual guarantee of income to
the corporations securing the fran
chises?
will he explain his record on the
labor question and his silence on the
tariff question and the trust question
during his official service at Washing
ton?'