The Irish standard., 1908-10-31
THE PRESIDENTIAL CONTEST.

THE PRESIDENTIAL CONTEST.
In it's last issue before election day.
the Irish Standard has no reason to
change it's forecast of last week. Every
indication points to a glorious victory
for Bryan and Democracy throughout
the nation. Shall the people rule?"
will be emphatically answered in the
affirmative next Tuesday Many honest
intelligent and patriotic Americans
have been laboring under the deluson
,.at this is "a government of the peo.
pie, for the people, and by the people,"
The intention of the founders of the
republic was that the people should
rule under representative form of
government called a Democracy, IN
which the supreme power should he
retained and directly exercised by he
people.
For half a century the people did
really rule. and the republic made
gigantic strides in freedom and pros
perity For nearly half a century the
government has been drifting away
from the control of the people until it
is now dominated by an oligarchy of
wealth and predatory tyrants. Coz
ruption is rife, and instead of a gov.
ernment of the people we have gov
ernment of the few in Washington, Of
men who bought their seats by the
use of money and who block legislation
r. the interest of the producing classes
The Democratic party favors the
election Of United States Senators by
direct vote, but the Republican party
wants the present system of election
to continue indefinitely. Republicans
like La Toilette. of Wisconsin,, pro-
claim from the platform that fewer
than 100 men control the country
financially. commercially and indus
trially, and that in few years they
will control it politically. They might
truly say that they control the Re
publican administration and are now
contributing enormous sums to keep
the party of plutocracy in power.
President Roosevelt is not above ls'1-
ing campaign funds for the election Of
his man Taft, as he asked my dear
Hartman" four years ago for s25O,3Oo
for himself and Hughes. The captains
of industry, the bankers of Wall Str,.t
and the multi-millionaires Of the
country can afford to contribute to she
election of Taft. but all their ILL., gott IN
dollars will be in vain. The people
are determined to rule themselves for
a change, and see how things will
pan out under a Democratic Presid ,nt
for the next four years.
If the electors of New York, Ohio,
Indiana and other close states are Of
fercd money to vote for Taft they
ought to spurn it with indignation and
disabuse their tenpters of the errone-
Gus idea that every man has his
price" If any voter is SO weak as 10
accept money to cast his ballot for
Taft when in his heart he is for Bryan,
he deserves ostracism at the hands cf
his neighbors. II he succumbs to
temptation. let him use the money for
charitable purposes and exercise the
right of suffrage according to his coz
victions. If the Republican bribers
find out that the voters are incorrupt-
ihle. they will not resort to such de-
spicable methods in future campaigns.
crisis has arisen in the affairs Of
the nation. Here are two men exert
ing every power of mind and body to
win the highest Office in the gift Of the
American voters. One is the unani.
nous choice of the great common peo.
pie and the other is the choice Of a
dictator and his satellites. One :eo.
resents democracy government cf
the people-and the other plutocracy-
a government of the wealthy. It Is lin
t, the American people to decide what
government they want. If every citi-
zen votes according to his honest con