The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-09-25
Governor Answers Charges As
to His Official Acts
A SEEKER OF NOTORIETY
Haskell Defends Every Move of His
as Governor and Declares That
Results Speak Louder
Than Promises.

Guthrie. Okla. September 24.-Gov.
Charles N. Haskell, treasurer of the dem
ocratic national committee, announced
this morning that he would during the
day issue statement to the Associated
Press in reply to the open letter ad-
dressed to the governor recently by VIII
liam R. Hearst in New York.
The statement by Hearst was given out
on Monday night last. In his recent
speeches Mr.. Hearst had charged that
Governor Haskell had sought in 1899 to
influence Attorney General Frank s.
Monnett of Ohio to dismiss certain suits
then pending against the Standard OIL
company. Governor Haskell in reply sent
a telegram to Mr.. Hearst asking the
New York editor to publicly prove his
charges. Mr.. Hearst refused to accept
the suggestion and in his statement to
dressed this communication to you as l
c. .-. nave lie slightest correspondence
or controversy with a man of Haskell s
character
The reply of Mr.. Hearst did not reach
Governor Haskell that night as he was
on train en- route from Kansas City
to Guthrie, returning to his home from
the democratic national headquarters at
Chicago. When shown the statement of
governor declined to make reply at that
time.
Haskelps Statement.
Governor Haskell's statement follows:
| ITO William r. Hearst.
-Sir:-You claim that there is need for
a new political party and have sought to
organize such an organization and have
formulated a platform.
Below you will find every declaration
of state principles in your platform and
you will also find that in every instance,
except one, the democracy of Oklahoma
in framing the constitution and acts of
the first legislatures session have COW
cred everything you recommend.
you also find that the Denver plat
form covers them with only two excep-
tions.
You will observe, Mr.. Hearst, that the
progressive democracy of the southwest
actually does things while you are de-
voting your life to simply talking about
that which might be done.
Il also beg to remind you last winter.
when Congress was in session, Oklahoma,
through Senator R. L. owen in the Sem
ate, and Hon. Scott Ferris member of the
House of Representatives at Washing
ton. introduced proper resolutions provid-
ing for amendments to the constitution of
the United States, among others the fol-
lowing:
Proposed Amendments.
"'A-To elect senators by popular vote.
" 'B-To legalize national income tax.
"'C-To constitutionalize an employer $
liability act. (Which you know accord
ing to the supreme court of the United
States cannot be enacted under the pres
ent constitutional limitations).
'D-To allow the states the right to
prohibit interstate commerce shipments
of convict made goods into states where by
state law convict labor is prohibited from
competing with free labor
"I wrote when these resolutions were
introduced in Congress and appealed to
you for your official assistance. You
ignored both. Your services might have
been very beneficial on that occasion.
.Such things as these lead me to be-
lieve that you are a loud talker, but not
a reliable actor. If Oklahoma democracy
has done in two years practically all you
recommend in your platform. why don't
you help those who do things, instead
of oppose their efforts?
I'm Oklahoma we believe that the or
ganization of labor is indispensable to ele-
waiting humanity and protecting the toiler.
We want respect for these principles to
be the part of the education of child
hood and practice in mature years. There
fore we have begun by requiring the
union label to appear on our common
school books.
NO doubt three fourths of the common
ORC oh
those who toll in the fieid, the mines and
shops
Union Label on Books.
Now let those who buy these books
ioin the Oklahoma plan and the union
label will be on every book in the union.
Even in Oklahoma it can't all be done at
once, but the good work is started, let
us all keep 1t going
Have you done as much? If so, when
and where? 1rhe Oklahoma constitution
Is conceded by all to be a model basic
law in defense of human rights and hap
piness.
Have you done as much? If so, when
and where?'
"Resuts speak louder than promises.
Read the following quotations from the
annual report of the State Federation of
Labor, unanimously adopted last June:
d" The above we believe, is a record in
legislation which has never been equalled
by any other state in the union. and the
following men must be given credit for
this splendid record First on the list of
friends of labor comes Governor Has
kell always ready and willing to lend
his assistance by day night to our
legislative board when our labor laws
were in danger. His office is always
wide open to us and we are free to con-
fess that had 1t not been for Governor
Haskell a great number of our laws en-
acted during the first session of the leg
islature would not be on the statutes of
Oklahoma today.
Then. after reading the above and
your talk compared with our acts done,
tell your audience If there is any ex-
cuse on earth for your efforts at a new
political party except for the sole purpose
of boosting a single solitary individual,
who call himself w. r. Hearst
&c. N. HASKELL,
''Governor of Oklahoma