Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-03-31
No Criticism for Opponents.

me.
| No Criticism for Opponents.
| / have no word of criticism for my
democratic friends who are going to vote
| for the repeal We have worked together
| too long: we have fought shoulder to
| shoulder heart to heart. too often; we
have mourned together in defeat for six
teen years, but never were disheartened:
We have reioiced together in our vic
tories during the last four wears. and
hope we will have cause to rejoice in
many more.
With deep affection
And recollection.
often think of the 172 democrats and
thirty-odd insurgent republicans who
achieved our great victory on March 10,
1900. which started political revolution.
love those men too well to quarrel with
them now. You and l. Mr.. Speaker. hap
pened to be democratic leaders in that
historic parliamentary contest and
among House democrats YOU and l have
been the chief benefcaries. You owe the
leadership Of the House and I owe the
speakershp to the fact fortunate to us
that We're the democratic leaders on
that memorable occasion, but | have as
serted thousand times. and ! do now
assert. that every man of the 172 demo-
Gratis and thirtyodd republicans who
titled to his full share of honor. In the
immortal words of Admiral Winfield
Scott Schley. There was glory enough
for all With such men will not quar-
rel. Indeed. the dignity of the high po-
sition which | hold by the partially of
the House forbids that l qurarel with
any member | refuse to degrade the
speakership by so doing.
| assume that every member will vote
honestly the way dictated by his intellect
nd i.fE fAG hue ~
should ! be denied the same privilege?
No man here should be rubber stamp
congressman. | refuse absolutely to be
either a rubber stamp" representative or
rubber stamp Speaker If | did.
you would have no respect for me. ! re-
greet more than I can tell that all of US
democrats cannot vote together. but
'Tis with our judgments as our watches;
Go just alike yet each believes his own
So, if we must differ. let lis differ in
kindaess. and it will be better, much
better, for the party, and therefore bet
ter for the country.
Studied Subject Carefully.
Truth TO tell. never spent as much
time thinking about what my duty was
as upon this l looked at it from every
conceivable angle to see if there was any
justification for not keeping our platform
pledge. for 1 desired to stand with the
President, knowing full well that my mo-
tive would be misconstrued by every
office seeker in the land: but. to save my
life, ! could conjure no excuse for bolt
ing the platform. That is the reason
why l was so slow in announcing my
conclusion in the matter. Having had
so much trouble in coming to a de-
termination myself never asked a sin
gle member to vote as l did. l am GER
tain that the entire membership of the
House will bear me out in that statement.
On the 10Th day of August, 1873, |
made my first speech in the House. On
that occasion, as on this, platform
figured in the proceedings. Among other
things | said:
II am democrat. l stand by the
| platform-by all of it-by every jot and
| title of it, because ! believed in it with
my whole heart when ii made and
| I believe i'll it with my whole heart now.
| 1t contains the democratic gospel pure
and undefled. Over political utter
| ence did l. ever rejoice more than over
| that because il was not Janus-face
double meaning, good Lord, good devil,
| all-things-to- all-men sort of document
| but was a clear bold, honest. manly,
masterful. comprehensive declaration OF
| democratic faith From hundred ros-
! trums, in the presence of high heaven
and thousands of intelligent law-abiding.
! industrious. God fearing. patriotic people
| ] pledged myself to stand by it here. and
| come what may. | am going to keep my
| word.
| ut is an old saying that all things
are fair in love or war. and some people
| appear to believe that anything Is fair
| in politics / dissent in toto from any
| such immoral doctrine The people have
| a right to honest treatment at the hands
| of those who aspire to be their agents
| in public affairs. and to the man who
| betrays them they will send the silken
bowstring for his own destruction.
| What is a platform. anyway? Is it
| an honest declaration of principles which
| the trainers honestly intend to enact into
| laws if they attain to power. or is 1t a
| dishonest device whereby to entrap the
| unwary voter? Is it a candid statement
Of the faith that is in us, or Is 1t
| bait to catch gudgeons?
| is 1t the pighted word Of men OF
! honor to accomplish certain things, or
| is it only "a good-enough Morgan till
| after election. which palters with the
| people in a double sense-which keeps
the word OF promise to the ear and
| breaks it to the hope
Still Keeps the Faith.
| I have stood by that declaration ever
| since, now almost twenty-five years. !
| stand by 1t now. l will stand by 1t until
am bereft of my senses. 1t is the rule
| Of conscience and of patriotic service.
| No other rule will do to live by to die
| by.
| That statement is in language more
| bizarre than I would use now. but the
| idea expressed therein is the same idea
| entertain now and will entertain until l
! am in my grave.
| There has been much felicitation among
! the supporters of this bill about their
| tremendous victory on the adoption of
the rule. When it is remembered that
| the majority was only twenty-eight on
! the rule and that a change Of fifteen
| votes would have defeated it in a House
| with IA democratic majority, the
grounds for their self-congratulation are
hard to discover.
When Pyrrhus, King of Epirus was
| walking over battlefield wherein he
had won a hard-fought victory and OBJ
| served the number of dead and wounded
| among his own soldiers he mournfully
exclaimed Another such victory and
we are undone!
| To whom does the Panama canal be-
| long anyway? To the United States OF
| America. We built it at the enormous
cost of s4oO.O00.00o. We built it on
| American soil. We have fortified it; we
| will control it. In order to get chance
to build It We created a republic.
For whose benefit did we build it? Fri
| marily for our own. secondarily for the
| worlds benefit
Why did We build it? In order to secure
cheap water freight rates
Who fought the building of the canal
for fifteen long. wea-iSome years? The
| transcontinentai railroads.
|