The Tupelo journal., 1908-10-23
RAPED OWN PARTY
OMAHA BEE CONDEMNS REPUB-
LICAN PLATFORM.
SHOWS PALPABLE HYPOCRISY
Blunder Affords Proof of Ridiculous
ness of the G. o. P. Utterances
When They Are Afforded Hon.
est Consideration.
7YE Rspt,e, ,cAu WAN

The Omaha Bee, published by Vic
tor Rosewater, member of the Repub-
lican national committee, and head of
the Republican campaign publicity bu-
reau, has made the blunder of CRITICS
ing vigorously part of the tariff plank
of the Republican platform, the writer
being under the impression that he
was really pouring hot shot into Mr..
Bryan. The Democratic leader, in a
recent speech, had quoted that part of
the Republican platform which is
criticised.
The editoriaHin Mr.. Rosewater's pa
per goes on the theory that this Ian
guage was Mr.. Bryan's own, the wri-
ter failing to notice that the language
was really part of the platform on
which Mr.. Taft is running.
The consequence of this is that Mr..
Bryan and his friends have on a broad
grin and they think that the smiles al
Fairview are likely to spread to all
Democrats in the country.
Plank That Is Condemned.
The words complained of in the Bee
editorial were these:
In all tariff legislation the true
principle is best maintained by the i'm
position of such duties as will equal
the difference between the cost of
production at home and abroad, to-
gether with reasonable profit to Amer
lean industries"
The Bee went m to puncture this
language in the following style:
Nothing prettier in the catch-all
line has been offered in this campaign.
The most hide-bound standpatter in
the country can accept that as salts.
factory and the rankest free trader
can find delight in it. The declaration
means simply nothing. An attempt to
legislate along that line would simply
open the way to interminable wrang-
ling as to what constitutes a reasona-
BILE profit for hair-splitting on wages
on one industry, price of raw materials
In another, rebates and drawbacks in
a third and so on through the list of
thousands of articles that are now on
the tariff revision, at Bryan's direc-
ton, would serve only to halt indus
trial and commercial progress and
keep business unsettled during his
term of office"
The Omaha World-Herald shows
that the words complained of are not
a part of any speech of Mr.. Bryan, but
a part of the tariff plank of the Repub-
lican platform.
Mr.. Bryan's Comment.
MI. Bryan had this to say when the
matter was called to his attention:
Il am very much surprised that Mr.
Do1orroto. rhAnll hnyo ottnrnntaJ 10
mis%represent my position. A good
many unfair things have been said.
but nothing more unfair than that said
by Mr.. Rosewater. To accuse me OF
using the language of the Republican
platform is an outrage. He ought to
apologize for this injustice and ex
plain to his readers that the language
which he criticises was taken from the
Republican platform and no from any
speech of mine.
This is a rich find. 1t shows how
absurd the Republican platform looks
to a Republican when the Republican
has a chance to look at it in a disin
terested way. When Mr.. Rosewatel
| thought that the language quoted was
taken from a speech of mine he could
see how ridiculous the language was
l ! hope that his opinion of the language
will not change when he finds that he
was shooting at his own platform in
| stead of at me-.
THE amusing blunder of the Omaha
Bee suggests a new diversion for the
campaign. Let the Democrats accuse
me of using various sections from the
Republican platform and from Mr.
Taft's speeches and see how the Re
publican editors will ridicule the Ian
guage."