The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1920-06-20

The democrats, when they meet at San
Francisco, must adopt, endorse and stand by
platform which will be fearless in its advocacy
of all that the people demand.
Paramountly the league of nations stanis
forth as the issue of issues upon which the
people of America demand hearing. The
democratic president has been a whole-hearted
advocate of the league. In the framing Of
its structure he welded most powerful hand.
At the drafting of this important document
he was recognized as one of the leading states
men Of the world.
A republican congress turned the league
of nations covenant down, and a republican
senate sought to force democrat president
of an American people to approve and sanction
separate peace with Germany-a peace with
Germany which would put this nation before
the other nations of the world as being one
without honor, as being nation whose legs
lators placed dollars and pro-Germanism above
the memories of the boys who went west, that
the iron hand of despotism might be palsied
and forever robbed of its bighting and crush
ing power
Following this a republican convention evil
denced a fear of the voice of the people through
childish dodging of the all important issue
the issue about which the senators had ranted
and howled and quarreed and quibbed for al
most two years.
All this being true, it will be the first duty
of the democrat convention to embody into
the foundation, upon which its platform will
be built, the league Of nations issue and to
make the league of nations, with such conserva-
tive reservations as may be deemed advisable,
the principal plank, the plank about which all
other planks shall be nailed into platform of
firmness of principle and fearlessness..
The republicans, not satisfied with scramb-
ling the league of nations matter, had not the
courage to come forth and announce fear
less advocacy Of the enforcement of the Eight
eenth Amendment, that amendment to the
American constitution which emancipated the
western world from the nefarous influence of
the liquor evil.
Standing as it does for what the people
want, being the party of the people. the nom
imperial party, it becomes not only to be good
politics, but it becomes absolutely necessary
for the prohibition plank as it will be
known, to find an important place in the demo-
cratic platform
This plank must be embodied in the 1920
platform, not because William j. Bryan, or any
other man or class of men want it, but be-
cause it is wanted by the masses which COM
pose the democrat party, by the masses which
compose the majority of the great American
public and because it is now an enacted law,
an amendment to the constitution, part of
the constitution-that instrument in which is
embodied all the fundamentals of the govern
ment, that instrument which is sacred and
holy to every true American citizen.
Actuated by marked desire to gather to
the support of the republican party's candidate
for the presidency the money powers of the
country, looking, evidently. to big business for
the tme-honored aid, bidding for the backing
of the profiteer and the heads OF consolidated
industries, knowing that the public is composed,
in the MAN, of the masses and figuring that
this component of our citizenship wields sec
ondary influence the republican platform COM
mittee enunciated that old and proverbially true
republicanism the public be damned" when
it drafted into its platform plank made up
of slurs and inuendos against the organized
labor of the United States.
Being party whose fundamental principles
voice a disgust for imperialistic policies it be-
hooves the democratic platform committee, as
h proof of the party's honest belief in the
things for which it stands, to draft a labor
plank which will carry with it provisions for
the protection of the great army of organized
labor against the barons Of industry, whose
comforting companionship is manifestly sought
in the republican platform.
But, in drafting labor plank, the commit
tee should exercise great care and move with
cautious steps in order that the threshing
vampire Of radicalism may not be given place
in the ranks of the honest toilers whose pro
lection the democracy of the nation must be
responsible for.
The equal suffrage amendment must also
receive careful attention and it must be handled
in such a way that it may be demonstrated
| that the rank and file of the nations democ
racy recognize that inherent right of woman
kind, the right to have a voice in the making
of the countrys laws and in the selection OF
the officers who will be called upon to enforce
those laws.
To the eternal disgrace of the democracy o.
some Of the southern states it may, unfortu
nately, be said that their party leaders, follow
mo alono lines of sentimental palantry which