The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-22
IN OLD VIRGINIA
By SAv oYARD

Certainly he had accomplished more
 than any other.
 In old Virginia is the finest citizen ship, and the reason is not far to seek. Take your Virginian and in him is less ! Of guile than you can find in common folk. Thus he is unsuspecting, for he feels that he is not suspected. What would call Anglo -SaXonism, in it's best aspect, 1 would not go to rural Nir-
 ginia to find, gentle, simple, brave, candid, honest trusting. yet ineXor ably resolute when aroused. And that is why the machine has been
 so successful in the old commonwealth.
 The people did not suspect it. They did not realize that cabal ran their state government apportioning place
 and honor among it's favortes. Not even In Pennsylvania was corporation
 rule more fragrant. For years, and un- til quite recently, these gentlemen were members of the democratic state exec
 utive committee ard it's controlling
 spirits: Thomas F. Ryan of Wall stret, Alfred P. Thom, general counsel of
 the Southern railway at Washington,
 D. C.. H. T. Wickham, general coun-
 sel of the Chesapeake and Ohio rail-
 road, of Richmond, Va, and John n.
 Morsley, railroad lawyer of Lynch
 burg Now l do not pretend that any
 one of these gentlemen is other than
 high minded man. They have intel
 lect and they are mon of character; but
 closely associated as they are with cor
 porate interests 1t is but natural that they should conclude that what is good
 for the railroads Is good for the peo- pie, and in theory that Is true, but in fact what is to the unwarranted priv ilege of the corporations is bad for
 the people and that is what all this row is about. The corporations demand too much. It is our supreme political problem.
 We have party government in this country. though that is an assumption rather than a reality. Then is it not true that we have corporation govern ment In a state where the corporations dominate the dominant party? Unques- tionably. If the corporations did not expect largess from the democracy of old Virginia, why did they send the very flower of their hencthmen to rule the councils of the party? It may be that corporations in every state were forced into politics by scurvy politi- cians. I think that likely. But the day is at hand when the people in mass, who are not scurvy, but sound, intend to drive the corporations out of pol tiles and oldN Virginia is about the best state in ths union to begin with.
 And, besides, the beginning of that reform in old Virginia is the crucifxion of the Martin machine, that has a tread of velvet and the grip of iron, that is of the corporations, by the corporations and for the corporations.
 Publicity Is all that is necessary to | destroy the Martin machine. Will they | havo it? l doubt it. No unprejudiced | and candid old Virginian can read the | speech of Carter Glass on the situation | 1, in the state that is fit to have an honest man for reader, should l not rest one moment until it investi- gates the charges of Carter Glass as to the integrity of the press of the | state that gave to mankind Thomas | Jefferson. Every reputable newspaper of Virginia should lend its circulation and If they are untrue MT. Glass is the mar who will suffer and be pilloried a q reckless calumniator.
 Thomas Jefferson in 1894 said: "No ex- pertinent can be more interesting than that we are now trying, and which we trust will end in establishing the fact that man may be governed by reason and truth. Our first object should there fore. be to leave open to him all the avenues of truth. The most effectual hitherto found is the freedom of the press.''
 In 1916 MT. Jefferson said; Where the press is free, and every man able to read, all is safe.''
 Again he said: "The press is the only tocsin of a nation'
 And this: No government ought to be without censors and where the press is free no one will be.
 And this again; Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press and that cannot be limited without being lost"
 You ask what business 1t is of mine?