Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1908-02-06
PRINCIPLES
and POLICIES
that HAVE STOOD The TEST OF
time.
Omaha WOrld-HeraId Pays It's Re-
SpeCtS to the New York World,
and Calls Attention to the Time
Tested Principles and Policies of
Democracy.

The following editorial appeared in
a recent number of the Omaha World
Herald.
The New York World, the ablest
and greatest newspaper opponent OF
Mr.. Bryan and the desires of the
rank and file of the democratic
party, takes exception to the World
Herald's recent statement that the
principles and policies of the DEM
Ocratic party have stood the
test of fire and acid and emerged
pure gold" 1t dubs this newspaper
"Mr. Bryan's first assistant personal
organ," and says, diffidently enough,
''if the desire is not impertinent we
should like to know precisely what
those Bryan policies are" Resorting
then to the venerable strawman ex-
pedient the World goes on to say:
mot 16 to 1, surely; although that
has been transmitted into gold in
spite of Mr.. Bryan's protests. Not
the reorganization of the United
States supreme court, for Mr.. Bryan
no longer speaks OF it. Not anti
imperial lism,' for it has ceased to be
discussed. Not government owner
ship of railroads, for Mr.. Bryan has
said it would not be an issue in the
1908 campaign. Not the initiative
and referendum, for Mr.. Bryan no
longer insist that it is carnidal
principle of democracy. Federal IL
censes, perhaps; but they have been
tested only with ink, never with acid.
We are very curious to know what
those time-tried policies of Mr.. Bry-
ans are. Possibly The Commoner,
which ought to be better informed
than the World-Herald, can enlighten
u.s."
Pending the time when The Com
moner shall turn its searchlight in
the Worlds direction, the World
Herald would suggest to it's contem-
porary the easy expedients of con-
sulting the democratic platforms OF
1896 and 1900. 1t is in these plat
forms the World will find stated the
principles and policies which, this
newspaper insists, have stood the
test of time and experience, and are
now popular with an overwhelming
majority of the people.
And first to clear the way, the
Worlds straw men may as we'll be
lugged off the field. There is no de-
mand in either of these platforms
for reorganization of the supreme
court" There is no demand for
government ownership" There is
no demand for the initiative and
referendum" They are not parts OF
any democratic platform, have never,
therefore, become democratic poll
cies, and hence are foreign to the dis
cussion. But the question naturally
suggests itself: Why does the World
drag issues by the heels into view, in
order that it may oppose them, when
there are so many policies directly
and clearly in point which, from day
to day, the World is advocating in it's
editorial columns? Surely the World
does not mean to be unfair, and sure
ly it is not running away from the
inquiry it has started even before
that inquiry begins.
Let us take, then, the democratic
platform of 1896, mentioning it's
principal features.
1t begins with statement of dem
ocratic opposition to the tendency of
selfish interests toward centraliza-
tion of government and repeats the
democratic demand for maintenance
of the rights of the states. Twenty
one attorneys general met recently
in st. Louis and took their stand on
that plan by unanimous vote. Seven
teen of the twenty-one were repub-
licans, and each of them presumably
voiced the sentiment Of his party and
his state. The World, if we mistake
not, stands on this plank.
1t declares in favor of bimetallism
in order that the circulating medium
might be increased to keep pace with
business and population, and that
the available supply of redemption
money might become larger. Since
then the prosperity that has followed
a fifty per cent increase in circula-
tion, and the frantic efforts that are
now being made to get even more