The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-06-21
DISCUSSES
 CONVENTION
 - MT. Bryan Writes Strong Editorial.
 -N- Says Platform of the Republleans- only Points Out the Fact that the Party is in Full
 Retreat

Lincoln. Neb., June 20.--Under the caption. "In Full Retreat" William J. Bryan, in the next issue of The Com moner will discuss the Republican. con- vention as follows:
 The Republicans who attended the National Convention as spectators and
 Joined in the demonstration in favor of President Roosevelt and Senator La
 Toilette, must have felt indignant as they watched the panic-stricken dele gates running over each other in their
 effort to get away from the La Fol-
 lette reforms, some of which had been
 endorsed by the President himself. :.
 Congressman Cooper of Wisconsin, rep resenting the La Toilette men, brought in minority report signed by himself alone. Fifty-two members of the committee signed the majority and one l signed the minority report. The Re- publicans will find the ratio of 52 to 1 a very embarrassing one to deal with | in ithe coming campaign.
 MT. Cooper's report contained a declaration In favor of publicity as to 1 campaign funds. It was lost by vote | of S80 to 94. more than nine to one. and yet the President has been advo- l eating legislation in favor of publicity
 as to campaign contributions, and Sec-
 retary Taft wrote a letter to MT. Bur
 rows advocating the passage of a
 publicity bill. How fortunate 1t was
 that Secretary Taft's letter was finally discovered and published. Senator Burrows, the man to whom the Taft
 letter was addressed, was the tempo
 rary chairman of the convention and the convention over which he presided
 turned down the publicity plank by a
 vote of nine to one: who will deny that
 on this subject the Republican party
 is retreating? Another plank of the
 La Toilette platform authorized the
 ascertaining of the value of the rail-
 roads This was lost by a vote of nearly fifteen to one. and yet President
 Roosevelt has advocated this very
 proposition. Here is retreat on the
 railroad question.
 Tn another column. reference is made to the injunction plank. The injunction plank adopted by the Re- publican Convention is a retreat from the position taken by the President and | from the position taken by Secretary | Taft in his speeches, although neither | Of them went as far as they ought to have gone In their effort to prevent | what is known as Government by in- | junction.
 Heer is the third retreat: The Presi- | dent has advocated the income tax as
 a means of preventing swollen fortunes l and of equalizing the burdens of gov ernment. The Republican platform is silent on the subject. Was the Presi-
 dent right in the position he took. If | the convention was wrong in endorsing | him, will the Republican voters follow | the President in this just demand, or will they follow the Republican organ ization in retreating from 1t? The President advocated an inheritance | tax. but the Republican convention is silent on that subject. Was the Presi- | dent ahead of the Republican party fin i . advocating this reform?
 "Did the President give false alarn l on this question or has the part, | sounded a retreat?
 Tn the Presidents message to Con | sress last spring. he presented an In l dictment against the conspiracy forme,
 among the great lawbreakers to ore vent the enforcement of the law. an to eyade the punishments provided b. | law The platform adopted by the Re ! r,hlican convention contains no fnti nation of danger. If there are an
 conspiracies, the convention did not se | them: if there are any combination
 it has not heard Of them: if there ar
 any dangers. they are unconscious o | them Was the President mistake
 when he Issued his defiance CT are tn l Republican managers deceived whe ] they think that an aroused public vii