Imperial Valley press., 1912-09-21
EXCERPTS FROM ADDRESS
DELIVERED BY ROOSEVELT

This is ordinary political contest;
We have against us the banded politi- !
cal machinery of the country; we have
against us practically 9S per cent of
the wealth of the country; we have
against us every crooked newspaper
that can be directly or indirectly con
trolled by that wealth, and we haven't
got anybody with us but the people.
Our platform does not deal with the
empty generalities with which the Or
binary political platform is filled; ii
does not contain the sound and fury
designed to conceal the lack of genu-
inc purpose. We in our platform, for
the first time since the Civil war, face
the issues of the day fearlessly, reso-
Lutte, determined to see that the cause
of righteousness does not suffer in our
hands.
The fundamental plank that pledges
us to fight for social and industrial
justice. the plank that pledges to
work in a spirit of real brotherhood,
scorning any hospitality of creed,
standing together shoulder to shoul-
der, in no matter what fashion we
may severally choose to worship our
Maker; standing together to battle for
the poor and oppressed, for the lowly
and the heavy laden, standing togeth-
er pledged to fight while our lives
last the great fight for righteousness
in this country.
We haven't confined ourselves to-
general statements. The whole Ameri-
can world knows just what our pro-
posals are; we have specially and con-
cretely outlined just what we intend
to do if the chance is given us to as
sumo control of the affairs of state and
nation. We have not given one prom
ise which if we are given power we
will not strain every nerve to fulfill.
Remember this, women of Califor-
MIA, that you not only have a great
duty to the state, but you have a duty
to your own sex. If you fail to make
your weight felt on the side of right
! eousness and decency in government
| here YOU will hurt the cause of women
| throughout the world. Here in this
state women have been put on COM
plete equality with men before the
! law. and YOU owe ii to women else
! where to make il evident that not
only are women made better and hap
pier because of getting the ballot, but
that the whole community has :,
healthier, cleaner and more decent
public and private life because of you
I am interested in your rights, but
| am interested also in your duties, be-
cause my experience has been that for
the individual himself or herself and
! for the whole community the question
of duty outweighs the question of
| right. Exercise the right SO as fully
to perform our duties.
Since I have been in California
have been amused at seeing complaints
made in the Taft papers that perhaps
there won't be any Taft ticket-and
now let every man understand definite
| ~ and clearly il there isn't, it is be-
| cause the TAFT managers, for their
| own improper purposes. choose that
| there shall not be TAFT ticket They
can put their ticket on by petition
| just as we are putting our electors
| and officers on in Progressive states
| by petition. here in this state; and in
almost every state in the Union that's
| the only way my electors get on al
| all.
Let me call the attention Of the sup
porters of Mr.. TAFT to the fact that
| they nowhere have moral right to go
on the ticket. II happens that in most
states they have a legal right, but
| their moral right to go on the ticket
Is simply the moral right of a pick
pocket to the watch he has ST olen.
The Barneses and the Penroses and
the rest of them in June last stole the
party machinery from the rank and
file of the party and they have no
| more claim to represent the Republi-
canism of Abraham Lincoln than a
party of pirates who have captured q
ship would have 10 represent the men
whose throats they have cut.
When | say that that was a stolen
nomination. | use the word stolen nth
scientific precision. When l say that
every honest man should condemn
every individual concerned in or bene-
| fitted by, or who connived at OF ap-
plauds the theft, I am using the word
theft with all its implications.
I feel that the most serious offense
that can be committed against free
people is the denial to that people of
! their right to have their will honestly
recorded, and if the denial is accom-
piished by fraud instead Of by viz
lence, it makes it just one shade mean
er, that's all. And now, friends, 1 ask
ycu to stand with us-I don't have to
do that though-so I ask you to take
the lead in this movement, for that's
the only request I have to make OF
you--I ask you to take the lead in a
practical fashion endeavoring to make
politics both economic and ethical We
regard political question as of no
moment unless it has some direct bear
ing on the material or the moral well
fare of the people of the United States.
I notice that Mr. Wilson Is reported
as saying that he was going to discuss
the tariff and the trusts, because M
Taft and l don't seem to want to dis
cuss them. Mr.. Taft hasn't discussed
much of anything, but have discussed
the tariff and the trusts, and Mr.. will
son hasn't ventured to answer me in
any way. l shall take it up now and
first of all l wish to say that Mr.. will
son, If he is serious in his utterances
has shown that he cannot and will not
help in the solution of a single one
of the industrial or social problems
that confront us as nation Every
reactionary is being rallied to the
support of Mr.. Wilson because they
fnow they can not do anything with
Mr.. Taft, and they are bound to beat
the Progressive party by any means
they can, and will use Mr.. Wilson as
an instrument just as quick as they
would use any other instrument.
AS for the tariff, want to call your
attention here in California to the at
titude of the three parties. No, II
won't take the regular Republican
party-it is a neglible element. Mr..
wilson's platform says that the pro-
tective tariff is unconstitutional and
must be taken out at once. Ina speech
last week, Mr.. Wilson said that the
protective tariff was malignant
growth which, as surgeon, he would