The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser., 1909-12-03
THE PLAIN DUTY WHICH
CONFRONTS THE DEM
OCRATIC PARTY.

editional from the Baltimore Sun of
Tuesday:
Democratic leaders, it is under
stood, have been conferring recently
as to the organization OF the Legis-
lature and the party policy during
the coming session, and further con-
ferences, it is stated, are to be held.
1t is to be hoped that these con-
ferences are indicative of sense OF
the responsibility which rests upon
the party and upon its leaders at
this time.
There is not only responsibility
which confronts the party. There
is a great opportunity. 1t is knock
ing at the door and waiting for its
answer. Shall the door be opened
to it, aud shall it come in, or shall it
come in, or shall it be turned
away to knock at the door of some
other party? The responsibility is
to the people who have intrusted the
party with power, with the mandate
to use that power for the public
welfare, to enact good laws and to
conduct the government of the State
efficiently and economically, as it
ought to be conducted. The oppor-
tunity consists in the fact that
the Democratic party, having
great majority in both houses of
the General Assembly, can so con.
duct public affairs as to establish it.
self firmly in public confidence and
make it reasonably sure that Mary
land will continue to be Democratic
State.
The party has thus the stimulus
of both responsibility and oppor-
tunity to incite it to measure up to
public expectations. If it falls in its
responsibility and neglects its oppor-
tunity, it will have no one to blame
but its leaders for the disaster which
will surely come. For if the Dem.
ocratic majority in the Legislature
fails this winter to redeem every Dem
ocratic pledge in spirit as well as in
letter, agrim day of reckoning will
await the party when it next comes
before the people. The record of the
last Legislature was not what 1t
should have been. But it did some
things, and the the people decided
to give the party another oppor-
tunity to redeem itself. But the
people are in DO mood to tolerate
failure at this session to redeem the
entire bond Of the Democratic party
to the last penny of political indebt-
edness.
The first evidence that the Legis-
lature can give of the spirit in
which it will enter upon its work
will be in its organization. The
success Of the session and the at
titude of the party before will be
largely determined by the selection
OF the two presiding officers-the
President of the Senate and the
Speaker of the House, These men
will select the committees which
will have a strong hold upon the
legislation of the session, and it will
be largely in the power of these
officials to determine whether the
session is to be conducted in the in.
terest of the people.
Above all things, men should be
selected as presiding officers who are
absolutely free from the domination
of corporations, who are honest, in
dependent and self-respecting, whose
characters and records are above re.
proach. If the President of the
Senate and Speaker Of the House
are to be selected by wire pulling
and log rolling methods, and as an
arrangement between politicians,
then there are breakers ahead of the
Democratic ship of state. The
future safety of the party depends
largely upon the honest and complete
redemption Of every pledge, in letter
and in spirit. A plain duty con-
fronts the Democratic party, and
the path Of duty and straightfor-
ward honesty in this case is the only
one of safety. 1t is up to the Dem
cratic leaders to realize the gravity
of the situation with which they are
dealing-a situation which cannot be
met by conventional methods and
discredited political devices and
compromises. The thing for the
party to do, and the orly thing for
it to do, is to put its best men to the
front in tie organization and dir
ection of the Legislature, to order
to the rear al whose selection might
in any way cast suspicion on the
party, and with all it's brain and
heart and strength set itself to the
task OF rfolming the work the
people have assigned it to do.