Weekly Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1908-1909, 1908-10-30
20 Travelling Men

hS cIasS. UdFeIeng men are aDle
by personal Cbserv alton to keep better
informed on business conditions
thr, 2hout the county tan any other
class of people. They are constantly
IN touch with commercial interests
and ate Immediately aft rted by the
ups ana downs of the business bar
Gmet er.
Mr.. Erypn is claiming that more
travelling men are supporting him in
this can pa gn than in any of his pre-
vious campaigns. ithout concediug
this claim, We ask. why should any
commerciel traveller who has bean en-
joying the fruits of tbs last twelve
years IF Republican rule seriously
consider Bryan to Taft?
is there travelling man on the
road, Democrat or Republican, who is
not glad that the defeat of Bryan in
1896 warded off the menace OF depre-
riated Is to l cure ency, and put the
country on the highway to recovery
from the disastrous four years of
Democratic misrule from 1892 to 1896?
Is there a travel ng man on the
road, Democrat or Republican, who is
not glad that the second defeat Of
Bryan in 1900 kept the Republicans in
power and kept the heels of commerce
revolving?
Is there travelling man on the
cad, Democrat or Republican, who
is not tn roughly convinced that Mr..
Bryan's success in 1896 or in 1900
would have meant severe Set back
To the country. and would have re-
tarded the comm ercial progress We
have since made?
What is there in Mr.. Bryan's Den
yer platform that appeals to travelling
men sufficiently to draw them away
from the Republican party? Is it the
program of p!ece-meal tariff reduction
which wou a. surely paralyze indus
try as would amputating leg an inch
at time kill the patient? Travelling
men repI esenting importers of foreign
goods might reasonably be expected
to afvUr the free trade stat sman, but
even they must be opposed to this
gradual tariff reduction. which, by
promising sti lower duties every
little while, would also unsettle the
Importing business.
Does the Bryanits so per cent anti
trust prescription appeal to sensible
travelling men? Every travelling man
knows that this propossl is absolutely
unavoidable, and that, instead of
rendering the trusts harmless by dis
cernment. 1T would nm hilate just as
many legitimate and honestly conduct
ed business enterprises. I5 wouid cut
off 80 pr cent Of the commissions of
the travel ng men or reGuce tie
number Of men IN the road so p r
cent. Happily, the p'oposit ion is too
absurd for serious consideration.
Can any sensible travs lirg na be
led astray ty the deposit guaraL t. e
wiil-o the wisp? Every ore agrees
that bank cepnsito should be made
as safe as possible, but the pal ticulsr
scheme championed by Mr.. Bryan is
being tired nowhere but in Oklahoma,
whose short experience with it has not
yet proved its value, but on the con-
tTary indicates its doubtful character.
Would any travelling man want his
firm to be liable to reimburse the
losses Of every other firm doing busi
ness in the same line? Does he not
know what long risks the other fellnw
would take in selling bills of goods
if such a guarantee were in vogue?
Getting back to the main question,
how ever, that should appeal to every
travelling man: "Would the election
of Taft or Bryan help most TO COM
plete the restoration of business in
the shortest possible time?" If
travelling man were figuring on quit
ting the road and going into businss
fer hImss If, investing his own money,
would h rather have the prospect of
steady, safe, progressive government
un er Taft or the risky weather-vane
eyp eriments promised by Bryan?