The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-07-13
KEYNOTE SPEECH WHICH ELECTRIFIED DENVER CONVENTION

The president and refused to organize
an inland waterways commission 10
examine and report upon the subject"
The opposition of the Republican
party to the policy of preserving and
developing our national wealth IN the
interests of the whole people had its
origin i'm that unholy alliance between
the Republican party and the land
transportation monopolies of the coun-
try.
Must Revise the Tariff.
With the power and opportunity to
carry out Democratic principles, We
will be called upon to revise our tarin
laws in the interests of the whole peo-
pie. This issue cannot be disposed OF
by the assertion that the Repuohean
party also stands for tariff reform Re-
publican revision and Democratic re-
vision are two different things
THE Democratic idea is that where
the tariff enables the trusts 10 main
tain system of extortion the duty
should be removed from all trust-made
goods. so that competition from ABROAD
may compel reasonable prices To our
own people. There is vast difference
between the protection OF American IN
dustries and the protection of Grim
inal monopolies.
1.-THE expenses of our government.
even when most economically admin
istered. will always require substan-
tial tariff rates, for the customs duties
will always be our chief SOurse or rev.
enue.
THE distribution of tariff rates must
always be established with special ref
erence to the expenditures of govern
ment. keeping in view the greatest
good to the greatest number, and par
ticularly prohibiting the conversion OF
the tariff into an accomplice OF mo-
nopoly in the robbery of the American
consumer.
1.-THE Democratic idea is that the col
lection of sufficient revenue to meet the
necessities of government must be the
basis of tariff regulations. and that
the Republican policy of excluding
competition by a tax on the American
consumer which requires him TO pay
greater prices at home than was de-
manded abroad is a pernicious abuse OF
the taxing power and manifest IN
justice to our own people.
Corrupt Use of Money.
1.-The corrupt use of large sums OF
money i'm political campaigns is large
ly responsible for the subversion OF the
peoples will at the polls. In the Chi
the committee on resolutions, contain
ing a declaration in favor of publicity
for campaign gifts was overwhelming
ly defeated upon a roll call OF the con-
vention, and the Republican party put
itself Squarely upon record in favor OF
concealing the names of the contribu-
tors and the amounts of their sub
scriptions BY vote of 50 to l in
the committee, and vote of more than
10 to l in the body of the convention
they confessed their guilt.
They thus admitted the charge so
frequently made by our party that Re-
publican success i'm the past has largely
depended upon the vast sums of mon
ey collected from the great monopolies
of the country and corruptly used in
the conduct of its campaigns.
An election is party affair and
the people have a right to know before
casting their votes whether a campaign
is being financed by the trusts and mo-
nopolies and just exactly what influ-
ences are-aeing exerted to gain con-
troll
For ii. is nor to be presumed that
large appropriations for election pur-
poses are being made from the treas
uries of the corporations without an ex-
press or implied promise that the con-
tributors shall receive special benefits
i'm consideration of their subscriptions.
Upon this subject has the Republican
party such utter contempt for the de-
sires of the people and its refusal TO
use cash register in its political af-
fairs, clearly exhibits a crookedness and
dishonesty that will not bear the light
of day.
1T is eminently proper that this con-
vention should define the Democratic
attitude toward the regulation of trans
portation companies and call the atten
ton of the country to the indisputable
fact that ii was only after years of
Democratic effort that an amendment
was made TO the interstate commerce
law authorizing the commission to es-
tablish rates whenever it appeared that
an existing schedule was unjust and
unreasonable.