Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1908-05-06

Use Independence and fulfill the prom
Use as soon as state government can
be established. Secretary Taft ought
to have enough courage to meet the
real issue and not attempt to hide be-
hind bogus issue.
Secretary Taft in the Omaha speech
made another criticism of Mr.. Bryan,
referring to him as "a gentleman who
still seems to have the power of lead
ing the Democratic party against its
will" He adopts the language OF
some Of the corporate papers which
have made the same charge. Secre-
tary Taft ought to be we'll enough in
formed to know that Mr.. Bryan has no
means of leading the Democratic party
against it's will. He has no offices to
distribute; he has no great corporate
influence back of him; he has no way
of influencing men except by per-
suasion; he has never had political
commission and he never had any
fund to draw on to keep up an organi-
cation. When he was nominated for
congress in 1890 no one else desired
the nomination, and it was not sup
posed that he could be elected, for the
district was strongly Republican, but
he was elected, largely owing to the
landslide of that year. He was re-
nominated without opposition in 1892.
In 1894 he was nominated for the
United States senate by the Demo
cratic state convention, receiving
every vote on the roll-call. In 1896 he
was nominated in Chicago because the
delegates wanted to nominate him;
| in 1900 he was re-nominated, nearly
every state and territory instructing
| for him. He announced Immediately
after the election in 1900 that he
would not be candidate in 1904, but
| the disastrous results of the campaign
| of 1904 showed the folly of any at
| tempt to cOnciliate predatory wealth,
! and as soon as the election was over
| he was discussed in connection with
the nomination of 1908. In the fall of
1905 Mr.. Bryan left home for a trip
around the world and was gone about
a year; he was not in correspondence
with any one in regard to politics, and
yet while he was cut of the country,
| something like half of the states
passed resolutions favorable to his
nomination. Notwithstanding this
| very unusual Endorsement, he refused
to announce himself as a candidate,
and for more than year waited to see
if the political conditions would make
some one else more available. In No
vember of last year he announced
that he would accept the nomination
if it was the desire of the Democratic
voters that ne should do so, and this
announcement was made to put an
end to the constant misrepresentation
that were being made by unfriendly
papers. That is as far as he has
gone. Whatever work others have
done in his behalf has been done vol
unfairly and without solicitation from
him. How, then, can he be accused Of
leading the Democratic party against
its will?
But the strangest part Of this
charge is that it comes from Secretary
Taft whose candidacy is backed by the
president and who has the aid of near
" all the government officials in Sc
curing delegates. Everyone who is
connected with politics knows what ar
advantage it is to have any ARMY o.
workers who get pay from the people
while they devote themselves to poll
tics The activity of the government
officials in behalf of Mr.. Taft has beer
such that contesting delegations have
been sent from a number of districts
Not only has the secretary the back
ing OF the president and the support o
the officials. but he has the powerful
aid of rich brother who is prepared
q to spend more money in securing tn,
secretary's nomination than the Demo
Gratis can hope to collect for a cam
paign fund. Surely Secretary Tai
= must have forgotten himself when h
complained that Mr.. Bryan was lead
: ing the Democratic party against it
2 will