Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1908-12-24
Platform Pledoes

Platform Pledges.
The Messenger can hardly a..
its esteemed friend, the Randolnb NE M
and News, in it's view Of the y, srs nsl.i
citation BY the Legislature Of tbe nl..s
OF the Republican state platform T. - \
vor OF law exempting from sttacbm,.
in trustee process wages to the anon, ],
ten dollars. The contemporary 60,
81 viii be found in foil elsewhere n M
paper. aA
This exemption plank was not ian a..
enth hour afterthought introduces :, \,
Dehest OF professional laborists b 49,.
was Il, as the Randolph contemro...-
says, written in pen and ink an n,
margin OF the typewriter platform ~.
uscript." The subject had hssn
ferred to at various times befors 49, ~.
convention By several Vermont newsm.
pers 80 that notice, to that extent At 49,
had been given the party and The ppsi;
that this was an issue likely to be az NJ.
per TO be considered BY the nlstto,-
makers The first draft Of the nlsfio,-
was prepared by Clarke c. Fits ana -
submitted by him to the committee !,
resolutions before the session Of the ron.
vention contained the wage eremrsi,,
plank. At that session of the resolntio,.
committee two or three Representative =
labor organizations were introduced sp5
heard IN their request for this and ons a
two other pIanks. They were told ~
practically what they were asking FOR ~
already in the platform draft and that IA,
wage exemption plank in that draft ~
exactly what they asked for. So. to thai
extent, at least, the plank was delibs,.
ate declaration OF purpose in response tos
demand that everybody knows labor had
been pressing for years and was not IN
eleventh hour afterthoughtu
The contemporary saws Of this miami
that "it received no attention from u,
convention and was not understood b.
one in twenty of the delegates whs
adopted the plat orm with a shout and
rushed for the train" Well. that sans
thing is true of practically every platform
plank that has been adopted by the psrty
in years. Once in q while something liz
the referendum plank of 1902 will mo.
woke ripple of discussion. perbsps bu,
as a general rule the convention has been
content to accept the committees dnk
and adopt il as q declaration u
party taith. Whose fault is il. thereiors.
II the convention puts itself thus on re
ORD on some things that are not vet posi-
tive matters OF party opinion but that Of
the delegates themselves9 And how shall
we be able to justify ourselves in "going
back Of the returns" on these matters q
platform pledges and in saving tha
pledges that are passed without dissent
are not always to be fulfilled? Wher
shall we draw the line, where make the
discrimination between what we think
the convention did that the party wanted
i 20 DO and what we think that it did
That the party didn't want it to do The
state convention is and long has been The
only authority for and source OF oficiaI
neciarations OF party purpose. II each
one Of Us, individually, is to run iof
once on our personal Interpretation Of
the right and the wrong of that platform
and still call ourselves regular Republ-
cans, we should plainly be substituting
our own platform for that OF the party
whenever we choose to make the shin
md such thing as cooperate party effort
10 mutual declaration OF party polieY
would be gone.
lnere are times when the man Of indr
pendent mind and the courage OF his cor
may wisely dissent from soma
parts ora platform upon which be isa
'andidate for office. But he should give
public notice Of It and make his canvas
'quarely upon that reservation Of opin-
on. Did any Of the members Of the
house OF Representatives OF OF the sensts
i've such notice about the trustee exemp
lon plank this summer and fall? What
IRE platforms for, II they are not to b
aken seriouslyf How shall we ever sue
'een IN making q party policy that viii
tand for something and encourage q
United party effort that will accomplish
If We treat platform promises
Nith contempt whenever we choose to re-
ludiate them.
Let the Messenger take this occasion TO
emind the brethren Of the state pres
nat there Is some significance Is its b.
niiiaf ante-campaign suggestion, LIT
= taik about the platform. and that i
.e would eli make a serious business Of
nsesninR out the proposition to put this
ma that plank or proposition into the
'lattorm weeks before the platform max
rs assemble, we might have more sssur-
nee that platform promises actually did
oiee the viii Of the majority OF the rank
nd hie Of the party. The first neglect,
ne nrst fault, in this matter, lies With
=. We devote our time to gossip about
anoidafes and make the selection Of the
ovetnor the great issue OF the contest.
4 is the law that the people OF Yer
lon1 live under---not the governor St
lbans Messenger.