The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1912-02-06

moved 20 say that no man has the
right to call himself . Democrat who
distrusts the people. Who n fearful Of
entrusting the people with plenary
power. who j. fearful'thzt the popu-
lar rights movement has gone too far.
Lincoln trusted The common people
with less rsoson for faith In them
than have we. We have every reas.
son to trust the people which moved
him to trust In them. and one besides.
Lincoln himself-the common people
incarnate In this type-man.
Democtacy means not the eternal
sounding OF futile shibboleths, such
as state rights-too often an apology
for state OF wrong-but the appliea.
ton OF fundamental poIiticiIa prin-
ciples to the working out OF the prob.
lens OF American life and American
welfare. Democracy Ia to be some
thing more than the pose OF hungry
ONCE hunting minority. but Is to be
the genuine conviction OF a vast ma.
jority. not the slogan OF a party, but
the ideal of the whole nation. We
have seen within the borders OF oul
own state that a man may safely trust
the people and find the vindication OF
his own honest purpose in the loyal
and enthusiastic support Of the com.
/ mon people.
4 We need not new south. but a true
south. south that shall be true ia
Itself. true TO the Union and true to
the principles OF true democracy. q
south that shall not have the name
OF democracy upon its lips and des
potism in Its heart. One thing Is GER
tain-that the way not to prepare the
negro for citizenship Is the way In
large part of the south Unless Lin
coins work Is to be done i'm vain. the
south must not fix upon servitude as
the eternal portion Of the negro race
Lincoln has conferred
New Dignity Upon Labor,
but the new dignity OF labor must in
clude larger dignity and fuller life fol
the toiler. IL ii is true. as Lincoln hai
said. that TO secure to each laboreI
the whole product OF his labor. or al
nearly as possible. is a worthy object
or any good government, then chill
dren should cease TO toll. then north
ern capital shall cease TO ensIaye the
children OF the SCUM. Then women
must not be overworked and under
paid. and must not be driven into
shame from shop and store and fac
tory by starvation wage. then man
must have larger and larger share
OF the fruits OF his labor and the state
Is 10 cease to be so unwise as to suffer
the evils OF widespread and protrac,.
cd unemployment.
The Lincoln centenary will he OF
little value unless in the spirit of the
gettysburg address we make IL tell nv
dedicating ourselves anew to the
things for which he lived and died.
The important thing of today is not
what We say OF Lincoln. but what
Lincoln would say OF us If he were
here In this hour and could note the
drift and tendency in American life
and American politics. Are we true
to him? Are we loyal TO his memory
Lincoln is becoming for us the testor
OF human worth. and we honor men
IN the measure I'm which they an
proach the absolute standar dof abra-
ham Lincoln. Other men may resem.
Die and approach him: he remains the
standard whereby all other men are
measured and appraised. There could
be no poorer way OF honoring the
memory or Lincoln than TO assume.
as We sometimes do. that the race
OF l.incOlns has persisted from the
earth. that We shall not look upon his
like again. When the I.incoln-Iike
man stands before us. let us recognize
and honor him fifty.