The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-04-10
Mr.. BRYAN ON THE PLATFORM

MR.. BRYAN ON HE FLA run vi
Although betraying the man whom
he was instructed to vote for for pres
ident at the Baltimore convention
Mr.. William ]. Bryan, on the test OF
strength, won out, and became the
dominating factor in that epoch-mak
ing body.
Mr.. Bryan became a member of the
platform committee. and was chair
man of the subcommittee of five that
laid the foundation and superctruc
ture of this party measure, which is
supposed to guide and regulate its &C,
tions.
The committee, and especially the
subcommittee, gave several days to
the consideration of this platform
and it was unanimously adopted when
presented to the convention.
There were no dodgers" slipped
into it, as Mr.. Stockton, candidate for
United States senator, seems to think.
That has been fully denied as untena-
BILE and intangible.
After the very careful construction
and adoption of this platform Mr..
Bryan was so much pleased with it
that in one of his speeches he was
moved to speak of the "sacredness of
platform pledges" with particular en-
phasis.
Speeches, like chickens, come home
to roost, and this one of Mr.. Bryan's
did, somewhat, it is believed, to his
annoyance
Mr.. Bryan said:
1.-THE fact that we not only have
platforms, but that the platform is be-
coming more specified year after
year, is conclusive proof that the peo-
pie believe in the democratic theory,
and they write their platforms be-
cause they believe, and those who run
upon them lead the voters to believe,
that they believe a platform is bind
ing upon those who stand upon it.
"As a believer in the democratic
theory of representative government
desire to announce it as settled
principle not to be questioned in this
country that platform is binding
upon every honest man who runs up
on that platform. | have heard it
said by men after an election that
they could not conscientiously sup
port something in their platform, and
it raises a very important question
whether a man should violate his con-
science as a public servant, and
frankly tell you that l believe that no
man should violate his conscience.
either as an individual or as a public
servant. Far be it from me to say
that any man elected to any office
should as an official do a thing that
his conscience condemns. But does
that mean that he should violate his
platform? No: it seems that his CON
science should commence to work be-
fore the election, and not hibernate
until after the election"
In order to make his meaning so
clear that no one might mistake his
attitude toward platform-breaking, he
declared, with a burst of that impas-
stoned oratory for which he is famed,
and stressed the following:
81 lay it down as a proposition. and
| am prepared to defend it anywhere
that the representative who secures
office upon a platform and then holds
the office and betrays the people who
elected him, is criminal worse than
the man who embezzled money in.
trusted to him.
In commenting on this speech of
Mr.. Bryan, one of the representatives
in congress threw out the following
suggestion:
Does this account for the discreet
silence on the part of Secretary Bry-
ana silence unusual and unprece-
dented? Has he in mind the part he
took in the framing of the Baltimore
platform, and of this particular
plank?"