The Columbus journal., 1908-06-17


1904, turned over to T. S. Allen, now
chairman of the Nebraska state demo-
cratic committee. $4,000 to be ex.
pended in electing . democratic legis-
lature that would elect Mr.. Bryan to
the senate. It was alleged to be part
of the understanding that in return for
this favor from the east Bryan was to
use voice and pen unremittingly in the
support of Judge Parker. In plain
English the New York intimation was
that the leaders there were distrustfal
of Mr.. Bryan's loyalty to the Parker
and Davis ticket, and undertook to buy
his support by giving him strong
personal interest in the campaign.
There was complaint that in afterward
giving the national ticket only luke.
warm and half hearted support Bryan
had failed to give value received for
the eastern money invested in his in.
terest in Nebraska.
The story may have read we'll in the
east, but it did not appear plausible
out this way, where Mr.. Bryan's politi'
cal integrity is not questioned, what
ever else may be said of him. When
Mr.. Bryan denied any knowledge of
the alleged transaction, the disposition
was to condemn it a. an out and out
invention of the enemy. But it was
not an out and out invention. While
Mr.. Bryan may have known nothing
of it, there was transaction by which
eastern money was put into circulation
in Nebraska in 1904, and the official
explanation Of how it happened sounds
exceedingly fishy.
The official explanation is furnished
by Mr.. Bryan's particular friend, Jim
Dahlman, now mayor of Omaha, who
was national committeeman for Ne
braska in 1904. Dahlman says that
after the nomination of Parker, Shee-
han offered to provide money to be
used In carrying Nebraska for Parker.
Dahlman says he told Sheehan money
spent for the purpose would be wasted ,
as Parker stood no show whatever of
carrying Nebraska. So the invest
ment was not made. Later in the
campaign, however, Dahlman found
there was q chance to elect George w.
Berge, the democratic candidate for
governor of Nebraska. Dahlman says
he sent T. S. Allen down to New York
to see whether funds could be secured
for this purpose. Allen came back
with 5000, supposed to have been
put up by the national committee.
Whether the money actually came
from Ryan and Sheehan, Dahlman
says he doesn't know. Dahlman in
sists the money was contributed to aid
Berges election for governor, that
Dahlman used if for that purpose, and
that if he had had $4,000 more he
could have elected Berge, who lost by
about 10000 votes. Dahlman de-
clares that Bryan knew nothing about
the money and none of it was spent in
the interest of senatorial election for
Bryan.
The weak feature of the official ex.
PLANTATION is found in the main propo-
sition, which is that Messrs. Ryan and
Sheehan, who were financing the Par
ker campaign, were willing to spend
SIS, 900 in Nebraska to elect George
w. Berge governor. That they had
some motive in sending the money to
Dahlman is plain that it was not the
incidental election of q democratic
governor in Nebraska is equally plain.
Now, what was the motive? Absolving
MI. Bryan of all personal responsible
ity, the natural inference is that the
eastern financiers were willing to
spend little money in Mr.. Bryan's
state for any old purpose, in the ex-
pectation that by so doing they would
be helping to commit Bryan to the
active support of Parker. The in
direct bride was not rendered to Mr..
Bryan, but it was rendered to his
friends and was accepted by them.
How is was expended by them there
is no means of knowing. Nebraska
has state law requiring publicity for
campaign expenditures, but the re-
ports showed no trace of this $4,000
Of corporation funds. If Mr.. Bryan
never heard of the contribution the
reasonable assumption is that the Par
ker men down east we're simply, work
ed" when they gave up the money. and
that they never stood any chance of
getting such received as thew had in
mind.