The citizen., 1911-09-15
MILITANT DEMOCRACY.

President Taft vetoes of the Farmers
Free List and the downward revision of
the wool tariff schedules, only serve to
throw into sharp definition the impress
sive lesson of Democratic constructive
ness at the past session of Congress, says
Norman E. Mack, in the National
Monthiy.
"The credit of achievement, and the
responsibility for obstruction are placed
exactly where they belong. Under the
handicap of Republican President and
of Republican Senate the Demo-
cratic House of Representatives has car.
ried through an extensive and very eff
cient program of relief to the public.
Backed up by the nation it has even
beaten down some of the Senate bar
riers, has imposed terms and conditions
on the garrison of that stronghold of
reaction, has won victory for reciprocity
after it had been repudiated by the last
Republican Congress, has passed the
Farmers Free List Bill. the Wool Bill.
the Cotton Bill, the Statehood Bill, the
direct election Of Senators resolution,
besides inaugurating far reaching re-
trenchments, and curbing the trusts by
Investigations that have done more to
check lawless monopoly than has any
other bit or bride tried in the last twenty
years.
But now, between the Democracy and
the people to whom it brings rescue
rises another fortress Of privilege, as in
the battle Of Germantown, during the
Revolutionary War, single stone house,
garrisoned bya company or two of the
British, stood between Washington and
the capture of Philadelphia. That fort
is the White House. 1t is there that Mr..
Taft welded the veto power, waves sig
mails of encouragement to the standpat-
tiers of the Senate, the Paynes. Cannons
and Dalzells of the House of Represent
atives and uses the authority vested in
him to neutralize the splendid campaign
of Democratic progressiveness.
1t will not be neutralized.
BY his reactionary vetoes, and the
threat of other reactionary vetoes to
come, Mr.. Taft only opens the way to a
decisive mapping out of a Democratic
triumph greater than that of 1910.
The remedy for construct on menac, d
by obstruction is militancy. The DEM
ocratic worker of 1911, baked of the
just objects for which he works, becomes
the soldier of 1912, as he was the SOL
dier in 1910.
The hosts which won the nation wide
Democratic victory last year, will be REIN
forced next year. by multitude of Re-
pnblicans, who have waited and watched,
reserving decisions until they should see
whether the Republican crash OF 1910
had taught their party any craftsmanship,
and whether Mr.. Taft had profited by
that severe experience.
These sentinels on the watch towers
of Republican politics, now have their
answer. They have seen relief to the
country near. They have seen it brought
about by Democratic hands. They have
seen President Taft interpose his vetoes
between the givers and the recipients.
They have also seen that in the strug-
gle of the past few months in Congress
all of the retrogressive elements, all Of
the confusing elements, and all of the
elements that fought against downward
tariff revision, and other measures of
progress, and, when driven to bay, hag-
gled for any vantage ground that might
tell against the people, and for the priv
ileged interests, were Republicans.
The inevitable outcome of such a situ-
alton is to exclude the Republican party
from the consideration of all who are in
sympathy with the progressive tenden-
cies, to eliminate the Republican party
from further federation by those who
have condoned its misdeeds and hoped
against hope that it contained recupera-
tive forces which might eject the poison
of special privilege from the system.
Nineteen hundred and ten was the
year of the revolt of the independent
voters from the Republican party.
Nineteen hundred and twelve will be the
year Of the revolt from that party OF that
extensive following who while not thick
and thin party men, are bound tighter by
the ordinary ties of party affiliation than
that class genetically described as indie
pendent voters usually are.
Thus we have three-fold set of condi-
tions:
1. The Democracy solidified and also
strengthened during the interval between
1910 and 1912.
2. The Independent voters, who con-
tributed so much to the Democratic sue
cess Of last year, confirmed in their faith
by the record of Democratic achieve
ment in 1911.
8. The warp and woof of the Repub-
lican party dlsintegrated by the disaffec-
ton Of those Republicans who have held
their judgment in abeyance until now,
but who have definitely come to the con-
clusion that the people have nothing to
expect from the Republican party.
A sitnation made of such component
parts pre-supposes only one result. What
that result will be is shown by the
steady and inexorable gathering Of the
Democratic tidal wave Of 1912.