The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1908-07-16

ments according to the Jeffersonian
maxim, Equal rights to all and special
privileges to none Shall the people
rule? is the overshadowing issue
which manifests itself in all the ques-
tons now under discussion.
Officeholders.
"Coincident with the enormous in.
crease in expenditures is like addi-
ton to the number of officeholders.
During the past year 23,7S4 were add
ed, costing SIG, 10000, and in the past
six years of the Republican admin
istration the total number of new Of
fees created, aside from many com
missions, has been 99,31S, entailing an
additional expenditure of nearly S70,-
100000 as against only 1929 new Of
fees created under the Cleveland and
Mckinley administrations, which in
volved an expenditure of only $6,O00,-
600. We denounce this great and
growing increase in the number of Of
ficeholders as not only unnecessary
and wasteful, but also as clearly indi-
part of the administration to keep the
Republican party in power at public
expense by thus increasing the mum
Der of its retainers and dependents.
Such procedure we declare to be no
less dangerous and corrupt than the
open purchase of voters at the polls.
House of Representatives.
The house of representatives was
designed by the fathers of the consti-
tuition to. be the popular branch of our
government, responsive to the public
will. The house of representatives, as
controlled in recent years by the Re-
publican party, has ceased to be a
deliberative and legislative body, re-
sponsive to the will OF a majority of
Its members, but has come under the
absolute domination of the speaker,
who has entire control of its delibera-
have observed with amazement the
popular branch of our federal govern
ment helpless to obtain either the con-
Slderation or enactment of measures
desired by majority of it's members.
Legislative government becomes a
failure when one member, in the per
son of the speaker is more powerful
than the entire body.
I'VE demand that the house of rep
s-esentatives shall again become a
deliberative body, controlled by a ma
jority of the peoples representatives
and not by the speaker, and we pledge
ourselves to adopt such rules and reg
ulations to govern the house of repre-.
sentatives as will enable a majority of
its members to direct it's deliberations
and control legislation.
Misuse Of Patronage.
1--WE condemn, as violation of the
spirit of our institutions, the action of
the present chief executive in using
the patronage of his high Office to Sc
cure the nomination of one of his cab
met officers. A forced succession in
the presidency is scarcely less repug
nant to public sentiment than is life
tenure in that office. No good inten
ton on the part of the executive anc
| 11O NlIIuC AL tiC OllC oOlCClSu Cdll JuSI
| ify the establishment of a dynasty
The right of the people to freely Sc
| lect their officials is inalienable and
cannot be delegated.
Publicity of Campaign Contributions
I'VE demand federal Legislation for
ever terminating the partnership
which his existed between corpora
tons of the country and the Republic
an party under the expressed or i'm
piled agreement that in return for the
| contribution of great sums of money
| wherewith to purchase elections they
should be allowed to continue sub
stantially unmolested in their efforts
| to encroach upon the rights of the
people.
"Any reasonable doubt as to the
| existence of this relation has been for
ever dispelled by the sworn testimony
| OF witnesses examined in the insur
ance investigation in New York, anC
| the open admission-unchallen by
| the Republican national committee
of single individual, that he himself
at the personal request of the Repub
lican candidate for the presidency
raised over quarter of million Of
| dollars to be used in a single state
| during the closing hours of the las
| campaign. In order that this practice
shall be stopped for all time, we de
mand the passage of statute punish
ing with Imprisonment any officer of {
corporation who shall either contrib
ute on behalf of, or consent to the
contribution by, a corporation of any
money or thing of value to be used il
| furthering the election of a presiden
or vice president of the United State:
or Of any member of the congress
thereof.
I'VE denounce the action of the Re
publican party having complete con
troll of the federal government for it.
| failure to pass the bill, introduced il
the last congress, to compel the publ
cation of the names of contributors
and the amounts contributed toward
| campaign funds, and point to the evi
dence of their insincerity when they