The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1908-06-30
CBy willis j. Abbott

has made a magnificent fight for a
law compelling the publication of con
tributious to political committees, Of.
fers the suggestion that as an emblem
Of the republican party the elephant
should be dethroned and the golden
calf exalted
Mr. Belmont's position seems to be
well taken. The republican convention
/ did nothing but worship the golden
calf during the four days OF its con
/ tinuancp Its nominations were made
with an eye single to money and to
a big campaign fund 30 poor man
had look-in. II tooA Taft, partly be
cause the president wanted him. main.
! ly because he stands close to wall
/ street. to the Guggenheim smcltcr
/ trust and TO the public service cor
/ porations throughout the nation 1t
+ voted down the proposition to make
a valuation Of the physical properties
/ Of railroads, not because that propo.
/ sit.on was wrong not because it was
| menac.ng, not because It stood for
anything that has not been done In
other countries, but simply because
| the railroads did not want it adopted.
and the railroads are apt to contrib
ute quite lavshly to a campaign fund.
/ The plank will appear in the demo.
cratic platform without a doubt.
Pursuing its worship of the golden
/ calf, the republican convention voted
down the proposition for full publicity
| before election Of all campaign contri-
buttons. This was a perfectly natural
! action on the part of body of dele
gates representing party which be.
/ lieycs that the brute force of money
/ can always carry elections How could
| the worshippers of the golden calf
| publish i'm advance of the November
election the true and the complete
| list of the contributions TO their cam
/ paign fund When Mr. Roosevelt
was enjoying $4,000 of a campaign
| fund raised by Il. r. Harriman-that
most undesirable ctizen-he denounc.
ed as unqualfedly false the state.
ment of Judge Parker that tainted
I money had been contributed to his
campaign fund What would have been
| the effect upon Mr. Roosevelts de-
nunciation of Parker had the demo
| cracy been able to turn to official rec.
ords and show where the Hartman
/ S2i6,00o came from. II Is no wonder
/ that the Roosevelt convention with
great enthusiasm voted down the
measure which would make their cam
F. paign corruptionists tell exactly where
they got IT, But that plank too will
appear In the democratic platform
Again the plank providing for the
election of senators by the direct
vote o. the people This too has a
marked effect upon the campaign
chest Of party. Remember that the
senator of today too often is one who
buys his seat. The republican party
for example in Colorado was never
so prosperous as when Guggenheim
OF the smelter trust, was a candidate
for senator. He couldn't talk, but his
money did. In many states the repub.
lican organization is financed by the
millionaires who want to sit in the
senate. None of them could be elected
If they had 10 appeal to the body of
the people. And so the machine poll.
ticians who now seem TO dominate
the republican party killed the propo.
sition for the election of senators by
direct vote in the happy expectation
of financial fayors yet TO come from
millionaire asprants to the senate
This too Is an issue which the demo
cracy will meet in its platform.
The defeat of these three PROPOSE
tions, not merely in the Chicago con
vention, but their singular unpopular
ity amons the republican managers
iustifes Mr.. Belmonts suggestion
that we substitute The golden calf for
the elephant as the republican emblem
II was to the golden calf that IN,
children of Israel bowed down in idol
airy and the disaster that followed
has been matter Of legend If no
Of history during the whole perioc
of Christian history. rhe republicans
We're ne ter so PROSTATE before tha
emblem OF plutocracy as today anC
the disaster which is impending tc
them is apparent TO all observers oi
political conditions.