Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1913-11-06
AS to the Chautauqua.

Sc1AAAA1 ~ - Io-1aAt AAAV nov I[1Otn tliNS
President Wilson represents They are
one of the chief sources Of that spirit;
they made both Wilson and Bryan pos
sible They are great seasoDable gath
erings Of the COMMON people for rest.
for fun, for common thinking. And
more effective thinking. has been done
there than in all the editorial rooms of
all the newspapers put together. And
more news" is published there and
more news" is made there: new news,
/ mean--ideas; new-fashioned news.
There is freedom there; free thought
free speech, and some day there may
be free people there.
Mr.. Bryan knows all this When he
was defeated for the presidency-bcth
times-the newspapers pronounced him
dead, politically. and they proceeded TO
kin him The Germans have cool
word for what they did: TodtschDeigen
They set out to SILENCE him to death. F"
They ceased to COVER him. They
would report nothing that he said or
did, and he might have been killed and
forgotten. But the Lyceums and tire
Chautauqua said: mo. There is still
some freedom of speech in this country.
Come and talk to the people, And he
went, and he lectured, ard "the galoots''
heard him gladly They not only heard.
they raid him for the service. 60 that
he could not only preach, he could live.
Others besides Bryan have been saved
by the people of the Chautauqua and
the lecture Lvceums. In the olden days.
all the did fighters who could got no
hearing from the nress and the better
people. were welcomed and they were
sent on To victory by the Lyceums.,
And in our day, LaFollette, Heney, DIR.
Wiley and others, oh, many others,
have had that appeal from the press
and the system, to-the people 1t may
be Thought that the newspapers are
jealous of the Chautauqra doubt it..
That would imply sort of malicious
intelligence which thew have not And
they don't say that the Chautauqua is
dangerous. They say it is undignified;
it is<a business asd run for money; it
provides vaudeville entertainment,
along with lectures by DR.. Wiley, Sena-
tor LaFollette and Mr.. Bryan, and that
it is undignifed for a Secretary of
State to appear there rs part of a
show. +" The history of the I.yceums.
including the Chautauqua. is at least as
-dignifed as the history of the Supreme
Court and more so than that of the
newspapers. Ard the gatherings1 have
seen were all dignified in the real sense.
They are democratic; they are very sun
aristoeratic;; thew are utterly uup'uto
cratic; and they may sometimes seem
pretty radical-to the press. But there
is decorum. always. The Secretary of
State is treated with morerrspect there
than he is by the newspapers. There
il music, there is what might be called
vaudeville. But the vaudeville Seere-
tary Bryan appears with at the Chau-'
tauqua is not so offensive as that of the
comic supplements with which he would
have to appear in the newspapers.
| They say that il is very Objectionable
for Mr.. Bryan to take pay for his lee
| lures; that his salaryshould he sufficient.
I l agre with this last. I'd like; to see
nobody in the world get more than
$12, 200 a year. but the newspapers
wouldn't stand for that. And thev do
stand for presidents. cabinet officers
and other public officers practising law,
specializing in real estate. and in the
stocks and bonds of corporations which
are forever for or against Legislation,
etc and let even Bryan publish news
paper And what business is more
! businesslike than that
From the new point of view, which.
.unrepoFted by the newspapers, is COM
ing to prevail, it would seem to be bet
tar for Secretary of State who thinks
he needs more money than his Office
pays. to go and get it from the people
direct than by some parasitical. round
| about Wall Street, Business method. It
keeps him dependent upon and in the
hold of the people. And that's what
political reform is after to make
the government represent the people
But, say the newspapers. he is neg
Letting his work. / don't believe it.
don't believe William Jennings Bryan
would neglect any public work, and /
do believe that he will quit lecturing if
he finds that he can't do both jobs up
to the handle. But neither do believe
that all the newspapers that are raising
this, the strongest objection. are sincere
in it. Too many of them want him to,
neglect his job more They want him
to resign. They don't like his Mexican
policy. They want to intervene in the
interest of American Business down
there.
And that brings us to the last stated
reason for the newspaper criticism of
Mr.. Bryan. They are dreadfully afraid
lest the foreign embassies and foreign
nations will lose all respect for Mr..
Bryan. I'm not. In the first place
rejoice to have the secret. aristocratic,
.plutocratic. diplomatic service of Eu-
rope see that ''dignity''-what they
and our newspapers call dignity-is not
needed in honest. open. democratic re-
lations with other nations. And l feel
quite sure that the agents here of the
foreign embassies are telling them that
it, no use: that President Wilson and
his Secretary of State are being fair,
patient. sincere friends of Mexico and
the Mexican people; that the American
government viii not make war on or