The National tribune., 1908-03-12
MIR. BRYAN's PLATFORM.

| they gave the man some strong medi-
cine and waited for the results. The
platform adopted by the Nebraska
Democrats. and which was undoubtedly
written by Mr.. Bryan himself, is of this
nature of treatment of the body polite.
The gist of the platform is:
| No corporation campaign contribu-
tions; publicity for individual contribu-
| tionS.
| Federal and State licenses to control
corporations; no company to control so
per cent of any product.
| Tariff for revenue only.
Income tax; inheritance tax on 'swol-
| len fortunes
| Inland waterway improvements
| Immediate independence for Philip
pines.
| The Drago doctrine.
Railroad regulation. valuation, con-
troll of capitalization. lower rates.
| Guarantee of bank deposits.
Opposition to Aldrich and Fowler cur
rency bills.
| Jury trial in contempt cases.
| Eight-hour day.
| Employers liability
| Restriction of Asiatic immigration.
Separate Statehood for Arizona and
New Mexico.
| Bryan for President.
This is certainly what the doctors
used to call the shotgun" treatment.
1t is blazing away in the tiIicket of pub
lie opinions and beliefs in the hopes OF
striking something that will be of vivid
and general interest. Like others of Mr..
Bryan's emanations, it is crude and
tentative to the last degree. There is
little that is actually curative of the
conditions of which Mr.. Bryan COM
plains, and that which has a remedial
| look is not well considered and may do
| more harm than good.
| Taking it up seriatim, we find that
the first plank has no novelty about it
as general principle since all parties
have declared against corporation con-
tributiOns, and particularly the stock
holders of corporations object to their
money being used for Interior purposes.
Publicity for individual corporations, we
| believe, was long ago announced by
President Roosevelt and many other
public leaders in both parties
Federal and State licenses are also
nothing new, but the proposition to
! limit any corporation to a control of no
more than so per cent of product is I
vagary. 1t would be amusing to see
statisticians trying to figure out pre-
cisely what the total amount of prod
uct was and where so per cent of it
| came from.
Tariff for revenue only has familiar
sound, and has been thrashed out pret-
/ ty effectively in former heated cam
paigns. If literally applied, it would
| disrupt our whole commercial and in
! dustrial situation. and place all the
\ taxes upon such necessaries of life as
sugar, coffee. tea, salt and India rub
Der. 1t would leave the luxuries COM
paratively free of burden, and take
away from our workingmen the home
market and the wages with which they
| fill their dinner pals.
| The income tax and inheritance tax
on swollen fortunes" is another vagary,
ttions inequality and injustice. No one
can draw the line at what constitutes a
swollen fortune. According to the So
cialists. to whom Bryan is pandering.
anything is a swollen fortune which
| gives one man a cent more than anoth-
er. The only income tax and inheri-
tance tax in accord with strictly Amer
lean ideas are those which put all men
/ on an equality. 1t may be that an in
come tax and an inheritance tax are
| good things, and New York and some
other States have tried the inheritance
tax very successfully, but they make ii
apply to every Inheritance, and have a
rigid rule which deals with inheritances
big or little. according to one principle
| The inland waterway Improvements
plank only brings up the democracy in
the rear of the column which is moving
forward under the direction of Presi-
dent Roosevelt and others, who are
working on those lines.
/ Immediate independence for the Phil
ippines is demagogic and dangerous. II
will make a vast amount of unnecessary
trouble in the Philippines, and it is ar
impugnment of our civilization and oul
humanity and justice to other peoples
We are doing the very best possible fol
the Philippines, and shall continue tC
do so. We are giving them local self
government quite as rapidly, to say the
least, as they are fitted for it, and thi:
will continue if those people shall show
a capacity for taking care of them
selves until they are in the same rela,
ton to the United States that Canada
and Australia are to Great Britain. i
will take centuries probably of wist
government and patient effort to secure
this result In the meantime this tall
of Philippines independence is as mis-.
chievous as the talk about Cuban indie.
pendence proved to be.
By the Drago doctrine is meant thai
European Governments shall not us,
their armies and navies as a posse
comitatus" to collect debts from the
South American countries. This is some
thing that the United States has beer
tending toward for some years, ant
may be considered as the settled polio,
of the Government.
Il Guarantee of bank deposits is a gros.
violation of the fundamental democrat
; ic principle of States Rights If a guar
antee of bank deposits is desirable, i
| should be done by the different States
and the Government has no right what
, ever, nor is it good policy for it to ente
, that far into the State Governments t.
IL