The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-09-18
In CIeverIy Sarcastic Letter Tells
Why He Withdraws With
Qualification.
"THERE IS NO DEMOCRACY"
There Is Only Bryan Party and It's
Followers Don't Know When They
Go to Bed at Night What They
Will Be Called Upon to Be
lieve When They Wake
Up in the Morning.

The Iroquois Association, an essen
TALLY Democratic organization, of San
Francisco, a few days ago suggested
to Mr.. William Randolph Hearst that
since he had decided to oppose the cleo
ton of the Democratic candidate, Mr.
Bryan, he could not consistently retain
his membership in the organization. In
reply to this suggestion, Mr.. Hearst
has sent the following letter to the as
ISOLATION:
To the Iroquois Association, San Fran
cisco, CAL:
Gentlemen-I received your letter
with both pleasure and surprise.
was surprised to know that Mr.. Bogart
was sending four dollars dues to your
organization, but pleased to learn of it,
as I am exceedingly ready to stop that.
1 was pleased and surprised, too, to
learn that the Iroquois Club was still
in existence, for 1 thought that it had
been peacefully buried along with the
last remnants of the defunct Demo
cratic party of California.
But since the Iroquois Club still in
way exists, I am glad to resign from
it, and the situation suggested in your
letter seems sufficient reason for me.
You imply that am not Democrat,
and strongly suspect that I am not,
according to the Democratic standards
of to-day. 1 worked hard for the Dem
ocratic party at one time and contrib
uted many thousands Of four-dOllar
checks, and cheerfully suffered much
abuse and much injury for the Demo
cratic party, but 1 believed in it then,
and don't now.
You imply, Furthermore, that you are
Democrats, and cannot help wonder
ing what kind Of Democrats you think
you are. Are you 1892 Democrats, or
1896 Democrats, or 1900 Democrats,
or 1904 Democrats, or 1908 Democrats?
Are you Cleveland Democrats, believ-
ing in the tariff reform that we didn't
get, and the military suppression Of
labor unions that we did get? Are
you Parker Democrats supporting the
trusts If they contribute and opposing
them if they don't? Are you Bryan
Democrats, believing in free silver
sometimes and in government owner
ship sometimes, and in the initiative
and the referendum sometimes? And
if you are Bryan Democrats and be-
lieve in these things, do you also be-
lieve in a Bryan platform that contains
none of these things?
Dear friends and brothers of the
Iroquois Club, you all remember how
the Democracy of free silver was
taught you and how you got intensely
excited over it, and cheered for it and
marched for it, and then were informed
that free silver was not true Democ-
racy after all, but that public owner
ship was. Then you remember how you
threw your hats in the air over public
ownership and worked up an almost
hysterical enthusiasm for it, and then
were Informed that this wasn't true
Democracy either, but that the initia
tive and referendum were. Then you
came nObly to the front again and af-
firmed undying devotion to the ever
lasting principles of the initiative and
referendum; but now you have plat
form in which there is no free silver,
in which there is no public ownership,
in which there is no initiative or refer
endum, and still you are Informed by
the old DR.. Gringle of Democracy that
only that platform with the owners
trademark pasted on the front and the
owners name blown in the bottle is
genuine Democracy, and that if you
don't subscribe to that you will be read
out of the Democratic party.
Friends and ex-brothers of the Iro-
quois Club, there is no Democratic
party. There is only a Bryan party,
and the followers Of that party don't
know when they 60 to bed at night
what they will be called upon to be-
lieve when they wake up in the morn
ing.
Once there was a man who had an
old carving knife which he said had
been handed down to him from his
grandfather. A friend said to him:
"It looks rather new. Haven't you
ever done anything to it?" And the
man said: "Oh, I've had the blade
changed once or twice, and the
handle renewed a couple of times, but
otherwise it is just the same knife my
grandfather had"
Mr. Bryan tells us that his variable
doctrines are the Democracy of our
fathers, but say that both the blade
and the handle have been changed so
often that there is no recognizing the
original principles.
Once, again, there was farmer who
had a balky mule and he couldn't make
the mule 60. A stranger came along
and offered to help, and the farmer told
him to go right ahead. The stranger
had a bottle Of turpentine. and he
opened the mules mouth and pushed
back his head and poured about half Of