The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1908-10-09
WHY THE BUSINESS INTERESTS
SHOULD OPPOSE w. j. BRYAN
E3v JAMES B. VAN CLEAVE, SECRETARY OF
THE AMERICAN MANUFACTURERS
ASSOCIATION

government ownership furnished the
only satisfactory remedy for the dis
elimination. rebates and extortions
practiced by the railroads, and for the
corruption which they have brought
into politics.
He Reiterates the Belief.
Later on, and on many occasions, he
reiterated his belief in the necessity of
government ownership of the roads He
went so far as to make devotion to this
doctrine of party orthodoxy. He
threatened to read out of his newly con-
structed democratic party everybody
who should refuse to accept this own.
ership folly.
What do the democratic and repub-
liean business men of the country
think. in the first place, of a candidate
for president who would seriously pro-
pose such a piece of socialistic folly as
taking over by the government of a
railway system Of 5000, 000, o0o-for
all the roads except a few minor ones
are engaged in interstate commerce of
some sort-and thus add to the 200, 900
present employees of the government
the 100000 employees of the railroads?
There is nothing in the democratic
platform that need alarm any legiti-
mate business" says Mr.. Bryan.
What does he call Legitimate bust
ness?'' 1t is clear that he does not re-
gard the manufacturing business of the
country, which represents an invest
ment of SIS 900. 0o0 0o0 as Legitimate
1t is equally clear that he thinks the
banking system of the country, which
is more extensive than that of any
other three nations in the world, and
which has deposits of $4,000, 000, 600,
is very far from being Legitimate"
MY nomination for third time, aft
er two defeats, has been due to the
growth Of the ideas for which I stand,
and the conviction among the people
that I am on their side" he says.
If this be true then, indeed, are a
large part of the people fooled large
part of the time. But just as Bryan
was using these words the stock mar
ket dropped along the whole active
line. and New York had a political
scare from which it has not yet en-
tirely recovered, and from which il
will not recover until the news of his
defeat is flashed across the country.
Says There Is Nh Such Fear.
when 1 spoke in the east In 1896,
he said in his Carnegie hall talk, q
sition to me. 1 saw that many feared
my election would inJure the country
and they communicated that fear t
those who worked for them. Today
there is no such fear"
This is part of Bryan's pretense thai
he is not as dangerous now as he was
formerly. 1t is his way of saying thaf
his successive defeats have taught hin
wisdom. In these words he insinuate.
that the country sees a new and better
} Bryan than it saw in 1896 or in 1900
This pretense is directed particularly a
flnanciers, at employers of labor, ant
at the heads of great industries ane
J enterprises Of all sorts.
The persons who fear Bryan less nov
J than they did in 1896 do so because the!
believe that he will not come quite 81
: near carrying the country as he di,
2 then, and not because of any imagined
change in him toward conservatism o
: balance If there be any such chang
: in him the average business man i
l unable to discern it. The drop Ii
!: stocks, however, which was taking
E place while he was uttering thes
: words, sho that many persons in tn
nations financial center do fear that
t by some mischance. he may be elected