Omaha daily bee., 1911-03-21

question. The shroud Of mystery with
which that question has been enveloped
and obscured for a quarter of a century
has been removed and II stands out now Is
a mere question of taxation. When our
adversaries In the last campaign conceded
that the tariff is a tax burden, which rests
upon the consumer they conceded away the
whole cause of protection. For the tariff
question, thus stripped Of mystery, is only
as TO whether this government should take
from the earnings OF the people more tax
money than 1t needs for government pur-
poses, when economically administered.
ut is the democratic notion that your
city government should take out OF your
earnings as a city tax only the amount Of
money It needs; that your county govern
ment should levy upon you no more county
tax than the county needs and that your
state government ought not. to compel you
to pay more state taxes than the state
needs And on these questions both parties
have always agreed. No man has ever
dared to advocate the mOnstrous PROPOSE
ton that either city, county OF state should
take a dollar more of the earnings of the
people than might be found necessary for
the economical administration OF the re-
spective governments"
Champ CIark's speech.
Champ Clark Of Missouri, speaker to- be
Of the national house OF representatives,
talked before Mr.. Bryan, who was last on
the program Mr.. Clark delivered an
leulogy Of the Nebraskan. He said. in part:
up to date Bryan's has been strange
fate, To originate and advocate as a pio-
neer important measures for the ameliora-
tion of political and social conditions and
the perpetuation OF the republic with
force. fervor and eloquence rarely equaled
and never excelled; to be denounced Bit
tery, mercilessly, brutality for so doing;
to be thrice defeated for the presidency
for their advocacy and then to see them
adopted bodily and enacted into law by
his political opponents while he is still in
the prime OF life. There is no tale out OF
the Arabian Nights" more incredible than
that, and that will be the most mystifying
puzzle with which the Tacitus. the sallust,
the sismondi or the Mscaulay who essays
to write the history OF the two last decades
will have to unravel and explain
Republicans have not adopted all meas
ures advocated by democrats in the last
twenty years. but they shave adopted so
many that it is absolutely fair to say that
certain things which they denounced as
anarchy when we first proposed them have
now been adopted by them as true political
gospel. II is also true that In sixteen years
the republicans have enacted into law no
great remedial measure which was not
first proposed by democrats and what Is
more, they could not have passed them
through the house Of representatives with
out the aid of democratic votes.
ROOseveITs Greed.
Almost every measure on which the
good fame Of Theodore Roosevelt rests
was nlched from democrats; while those
on which his bad fame will be bottomed,
his new nationalism and similar doctrines,
were originated by republicans. He boldly
borrowed, SEIZED carried away and con-
verted to his own use and to the use of
the republican party any democratic prop
osition which was becoming too popular
Ito be ignored or shunted out of the way,
land then. though he forced them upon the
statute books by democratic votes, he
claimed not only the lions share of the
glory, but all the glory for himself and
the republicans In all these matters the
democrats acted on purely patriotic prin-
ciples Knowing fun well that he and his
would monopolize the hOnors we supported
them because they would benefit the peo-
Pile"
Mr.. Clark declared the republicans had
J appropriated Judge John II. Reagan's plar
, OF railroad regulation and that reciprocity
was a late borrowing OF Bourbon prin.
ciples
Referring to the special session Of con
J gress. Mr. Clark said:
Nobody commissioned me to make up
program for the house democrats; blu
knowing them like book l make Dol,
I hat mill a NtsFN us.a.
to the pErty and the country By entering
al once upon the fulfillment OF the prom
I ises which We made TO carry the election
No doubt the house will pass the Canad
ian reciprocity bill, either amended or un
: amended. Al the same time we viii begl
E the revision Of the tariff downward whic
2 We promised to do and which on the eight
day OF last November the American PEG
pie by large majority commissioned u
y 70 DO. Whether We viii first pass tn
3 reciprocity bill and then tariff bill o
bills, or whether the passage of the reel
| prOclty bill shall be part Of a tariff bi
or bills is simply a matter OF procedur
| 10 be thrashed out IN the democratic eau
Gus In addition to all this we may TAX
:. a turn az investigating the various de
n p9rtments and In general legislation.
A., President Taft had fair warning that
" he called an extra session we would q
" as we pleased for both Mr. Chairma
E. Underwood and myself told him 50, Ther
u Is no sort OF difference betwixt a regula
- and extraordinary session, except as
y the time Of converting. Certain republica
ic papers have begun an effort TO coerd
"a congress into acting on reciprocity an
thar alone BY accerttng that the presideT
N has right 20 adjourn congress II IN
u wy houses cannot agree on date e
"A adjournment They seem 20 think the
have discovered something now In the fas
'e that the president has that power; bu
he they are mistaken. IL Is 30 written d th
a constitution and II is only reasonable
. assure that all representatives and sens
tors have read that venerable dOcumen
- The balance OF his address Mr.. Clar
= devoted to denial that there is anythr
~ but harmony in the democratic ranks