Evening journal., 1908-02-01
BRYAN'S TRIBUTE TO
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT

Sometimes Democrats criticise me
for speaking of the President in COM
plimentary terms. 1 cannot help 1t at
times; 1 have enjoyed much advantage
by having my ideas made respectable.
But after all these ideas were not
mine. They existed before I existed
and will continue to exist. In recent
campaigns they used the term Bryan
ism in derision and now they can't
rub it out"
Mr.. Bryan said that during the last
eleven years Democratic policies had
been vindicated as policies of no other
party had been in like period.
Party Was Right on Money Question.
Referring to the money question, Mr..
Bryan said the problem had not gone
against the party as the Republicans
had contended it would. Then we
contended the country needed more
money and today we have more in cir
culation than we had in 1895. With
the increased circulation has come
higher prices and better times just as
we said would come. This increase
did not come as a direct result of Re-
publican arguments, but in spite Of
them"
Mr.. Bryan said the Democratic pol
.icies concerning the trust question had
also been vindicated. you remember
they said there were no trusts but
after we proved that there we're they
said, don't disturb them, they are the
natural growth of business conditions"
From the beginning of time there
have been trusts" he declared. Many
hundreds Of years ago there was a cer-
tain John in Palestine who ran the
oil TTn NsaI sarsHN Il
rebates to help him, but he had
trust just the same. He solved the
transportation problem by packing his
oil on the back of the Democratic en-
blem There is very little difference
between the oil trust of that John and
the oil trust of our John of the pres
ent day. It is reasonable to presume
that our John got his ideas of an oil
monopoly from the John Of Palestine"
Demands Railroad Regulation.
Now take the railroad question. Our
party demands certain reforms in this
great problem. and the President got
more support from Democrats in enact
ing these reforms into laws than he
got from Republicans"
Predatory wealth has subsidized
newspapers and misrepresented tke
facts of the situation. and we have
evidence to prove it. We are not
through with the regulation of rail-
roads. We must find just what they
are worth so that we can tell how
much profit is required to make a
reasonable dividend on the stock. This
watering Of stock must cease"
Mr.. Bryan asserted that recently the
opposition cartoons Of him were grow
ing in his favor. As an example, he
referred to a recent cartoon picturing
the President and himself as birds.
THAT is a step in advance" he
smilingly said. Being bird in 1908
is a great advance over being a SER
pent in 1885,
The cartoon in question pictured
Roosevelt on a nest and Bryan resting
on a tree branch nearby. The nest
was lined with feathers taken from
Bryan, who presented a beraggled ap-
pearance, having only one feather,
labeled tariff REFORM" left.
"One injustice was done me-" Mr..
Bryan asserted. ''The President did not
have all my feathers, because I have
some growing. 1 am willing to part
with them. however. if the President
viii use them"
Mr.. Bryan declared that the recent
panic was due more to the watering
Of stocks than to any other cause "If
this is the result Of turning on the
light 1 must commend the man who
prefers light rather than darkness"
Mr.. Bryan said. But he didn't turn II
on soon enough. When gamblers down
in Wall street get cold we have to
shiver all over the country. This rail-
road business shall be put on an honest
basis. There is no reason why their
stocks should not represent true value
just as a State or a county bond rep
resents true value.
For Revision of Tariff.
Mr.. Bryan referred briefly to the
questions of tariff, labor and the income
tax. Mr.. Bryan said the Roosevelt
policy of arbitration between capital
and labor was a Democratic doctrine
and that the President had endorsed
the Democratic idea o. an income tax.
I was called everything for advocat-
ing such a law. Now a Republican
President says an income tax is Just
the thing needed to lift some Of the
burdens on struggling common peo-
pie.
"Our ideas have been accepted and
our policies vindicated because those
ideas and those policies have been
framed from the standpoint of the peo-
pies interests. When they found
that Republican policies were falling
into disfavor and Democratic policies
were growing into favor they willingly
accepted them all We knew better
than they what was best for all the
people; they knew what was best for a
few.
Condemns Great Fortunes.
John Wanamaker is quoted as hav-
ing said that millions in money is be-
ing hid under carpets rather than in
banks, and government reports show
that much money is being deposited
abroad rather than in our own banks.
If were banker should be ashamed
Of such a banking system and would
be glad to see it changed.
Republican leaders do not realize
what is going on in this country. The
people are getting ready to act. The
President has been called on to cry out
against swollen fortunes. 1 congratu-
late him. He is getting only half the
cussing; am getting the other half"
Banquet at German Hall.
The banquet at German Hall was held
shortly after Colonel Bryan arrived there
from the Opera House. There was such a
crowd Of heavyweight Democrats in the