The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1908-07-23
FRANK B. HOWE. Editor and PubliSheI
The independence Movement.

The independence Movement.
Apart from the interesting address
es and the suggestive platform of the
state convention of the Vermont In.
dependence party, the movement has
as yet gotten under so little Roadway
that il would be improper to under.
take a serious judgment thereon. Re
ferring first tothe latter, the platform
contains some rather familiar mater
ial.
An especially popular plank, If one
can judge Of an audience composed
rs matter of fact of half Democrats
and half Republicans, was that call
ing for the election, directly by the
people, of the license commissioners
in each town that votes Yes. This
was Incorporated in the platform of
the Independent party two years
go, in these Words
! I'VE heartily approve the principle
that forbids a Judge, created and act
Ing with judicial capacity, from also
exercising an executive function. and
demand such amendments to the To-
cal option law as shall compel the
election of license commissioners by
the people"
The plank regarding purity in cleo
tons was also put forth in 1906 by
the fusion movement, with a needful
addition, as follows:
We demand such laws as shall
protect to the full the purity of the
ballot at elections and in the pri-
marles, and which, at the same time,
shall give to the individual voter the
fullest scope to exercise his wish and
inclination"
The clause which refers to a bust
nesslike administration of the states
affairs is also familiar, especially
where it says, the government
should IDEAL with the property OF the
public as an honest trustee deals with
The property of an individual" a
sentiment that has been uttered I'm
these columns many times. The same
thing applies to the paragraph deal
ing with double taxation and with
state expenses.
The interesting things to the OBJ
server-and most of the audience
were observers on Thursday evening
were the speakers. Mr. Spellman S
address contained considerable famil
lar material and his assault on
the old parties was mostly of a per
sonal character He assailed the Re
publican party because ii included
Senators Depew and Platt. of New
York, the first of whom he accused
of accepting a salary as attorney in a
certain corporation without perform
Iinu va Ina hln hntfaus 1, i,
olared to be a yoluptuary and Sc
,ducer.
The truth about Depew is that he
accepted yearly retainer exactly as
Mr. Spellman would do If he had the
opportunity, but without arguing the
question of the personal morality oil
these mon, what has the Republican
party TO do with IL? The private
virtue OF no public man can bt
guaranteed Ii the Independence
League ever gets TO a point where q
considerable number OF men of not,
are included within its ranks. will Z
, moralist not be able to point to meI
whose private characters are not i'm
peccable? The ordinary citizen, sub
Ject to mans inhrmities, should z,
: with some care in this direction.
Similarly, Mr.. Spellman assailet
Pat McCarren, Fingy Corners, Charlie
| Murphy, Tom Taggart, not on thei
public records as politicians an,
1 party leaders but on their businesse
and private characters.
such argument is misleading an
improper. There are public sin
enough sins that affect the publ
purse and the public welfare, so tina
1t is not only gratuitous but mcoI
yincing where the keynote speech
of a new party finds nothing bette
TO urge against the old parties tina
the private characters OF their Leaf
ers
| Mr. Pollock was more definite an
on more tenable ground. He accuse
the Republican and Democratic pa
ties of the state of being in effeC
one that ore so overbalanced tn
other that the lesser was useless as
check, that, in fact, one policy of III
Republican party was to render I'll
opposition of the minority Harmless
He also denounced the conditio
which makes it impossible for I'll
] poor man to aspire to the governo
ship of the state.
: Specifically, he stated fatty this
the governorship of Vermont had b,
come a straight purchase, citing tn
TACT that certain campaign ha
cost the candidate quarter of a mi
lion
Much of this The Herald ha
preached for years, The opportunit
: and duty of the Republican part
v seem clear under this sort of assault
: il must clean house again. 1t mus
D enact law requiring full publicit
during primary and elective can
paigns. 1t must remove the powe
of appointing license commissioner
/. from the assistant judges. Ii mus
reduce the number of its commission
and the enormous expense of dom
state business. Instead of spendin
J one million dollars in various prof
Tess directions, let us guild som
scientific roads.
There is nothing epoch.makine
perhaps, in the birth of the Indepel
dence party, but the things 1t stant
for are sure to come, either by wa
of the party routine or through SON
sort of political revolution, such
the state has been threatened wit
for years.
win reform come within the part
- or without 1t, That remains for Il
coming legislature and administratfc
TO decide.-Rutland Herald