The Penn's Grove record., 1908-08-14
The PENIS Grove Record
FRIDAY, AUGUST IA, zoos.
BRYAN'S ACCEPTANCE
The Great Issue Is:
.SHALL THE PEOPLE RULER"

The Great Issue Is:
..SHALL THE PEOPLE RULER"
The official notification of the nominal
tion of William j. Bryan as the Demo-
cratic candidate for President, was made
a great non-partisian event at Lincoln,
Neb.. on Wednesday, Governor Sheldon
and other Republican state officers were
present.
Mr.. Bryan spoke as follows:
Mr.. Clayton and Gentlemen of the
Notification Committee: l can not ac-
cept the nomination which you official
ly tender, without first acknowledging
nv deep Indebtedness to the Democrat
10 party for the extraordinary n
which it has conferred upon me. Hav-
ing twice before been a candidate for
the presidency, In campaigns which
ended In defeat, a third nomination, the
result Of the free and voluntary act OF
the voters Of the party, can only be ex-
planned by a substantial and undis-
puted growth in the principles and pol
icies for which I, with q multitude OF
others, have contended. AS these prtn-
ciples and policies have given me what
ever political strength I possess. the
action of the convention not only re-
news my faith in them, but strengthens
my attachment to them.
A Platform Is Binding.
I shall, In the near future, prepare a
more formal reply to your notification,
and, in that letter Of acceptance, VIII
deal with the platform in detail. 1t is
sufficient, at this time, to assure you
that / am in hearty accord with both
the letter and the spirit of the plat
form. l endorse it in whole and In
part, and shall, If elected, regard Its
declarations as binding upon me. And.
I may add, a platform is binding as to
what 1t omits as well as to what 1t
contains. According to the democratic
idea, the people think for themselves
and select officials to carry out their
wishes. The voters are the sovere1gns;
the officials are the servants, employed
for a fixed time and at O stated salary
to do what the sovereigns want done,
and to do 1t In the way the sovereigns
want 1t done. Platforms are entirely
In harmony with this democratic idea.
A platform announces the party's po-
sition on the questions which are at is
sue; and an official is not at liberty to
use the authority vested in him to
urge personal views which have not
been submitted to the voters for their
approval. If one is nominated upon a
platform which is not satisfactory to
him, he must, If candid, either decline
the nomination, or, In accepting it, pro-
pose an amended platform In lieu of
the one adopted by the convention. No
such situation, however, confronts your
candidate, for the platform upon which
I was nominated not only contains
nothing from which l dissent, but 1t
specifically outlines all the remedial
legislation which we can hope to Sc
cure during the next four years.
Republican Challenge Accepted.
The distinguished statesman who re-
ceived the Republican nomination for
president said, in his notification
speech: 1.-THE strength of Metropolitan
cause In the campaign at hand is the
fact that we represent the policies es-
senttal to the reform of known abuses,
to the continuance Of liberty and true
prosperity, and that we are determined,
as our platform unequivocally declares,
to maintain them and carry them on"
In the name of the Democratic party,
j accept the challenge, and charge that
the Republican party is responsible for
all the abuses which now exist in the
federal government, and that 1t is i'm
potent to accomplish the reforms which
are ~imperatively needed. Further, I
a not concur In the statement that
the Republican platform unequivocally
declares for the reforms that are nee
essary; on the contrary, ! affirm that 1t
openly and VIGOROUSLY disappoints the
hopes and expectations of reformers,
whether those reformers be Republic
ans or Democrats. So far did the Re-
publican convention fall short of its
duty that the Republican candidate felt
1t necessary to add to his platform in
several important particulars, thus re-
buking the leaders Of the party, upon
whose cooperation he must rely for
the enactment of remedial legislation.
AS / shall, In separate speeches, dis
cuss the leading questions at issue, I
shall at this time confine myself to the
paramount question, and to the far
reaching purpose of our party, as that
purpose is set forth in the platform.
Shall the People Ruler
Our platform declares that the over
shadowfng issue which manifests itself
IN all the questions now under discus.
Sion, Is shall the people ruler" No
matter which way we turn; no matter
TO what subject we address ourselves
the same question confronts us. Shall
the people control their own govern
ment, and use that government for the
protection Of their rights and for the
promotion Of their welfare? or shall
the representatives Of predatory wealth
prey upon a defenseless public, while
the offenders secure immunity from
subservient officials whom they raise
to power by inscriptions methods
This is the issue raised by the known
abuses" to which Mr.. Taft refers.
Presidents indictment Against the
Party.
In a message sent to congress last
January, President Roosevelt said
THE attacks by these great corpora
tons on the administrations actions
have been given a wide circulation
throughout the country, in the ews
papers and otherwise, by those writers
and speakers who, consciously or un.
consciously, act as the representatives
OF predatory wealth-of the wealth &C.
cumulated on a giant scale by all forms
of iniqutty, ranging from the oppres-
sion of wage earners to unfair and IN.
wholesome methods of crushing out
competition, and to defrauding the
public by stock-jobbing and the mantp-
ulation of securities. Certain wealthy
men of this stamp, whose conduct