The times dispatch. [volume], July 03, 1912, Page 9, Image 9

About The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914

Image provided by: Library of Virginia; Richmond, VA

                
Delegates Pleased and Happy, Now That Long Convention Fight Is Over
WOODROW WILSON?
HIS LIFE AND WORK
Woodrow Wilson was born in Staun
ton, Vu.. December 28, 1S5?;. Ills futh- ,
or was the Rev. Joseph It. Wilson, one |
of the stalwart men of tho Southern
Presbyterian Church. His mother, born
Jessie Woodrow, wan of Scotch-Irish
blood. h< r forebears huvlng been
notable figures In the Scottish Church;
one of them, because of hiH theological
Staunchness, incurred tho llboral satire
of Robert Ourns, and another wrote
the -History of the Sufferings of the
Church Of .Scotland from the Restora- ;
tlOtl to the Revolution.The Wll- I
tons and the Wobdirowa were men'
Of conv'ctlons, habits of study and firm
temper, qualities inherited by tho man
to whom tlie names are combined. I
Woodrow Wilson had his prepara?
tory education from private schools
and private tutors In Augusta, Ga., co- j
l?mbiu, ?. C. and Wilmington, N. C,
und was afterward a student In four!
colfegu/i: Davidson, Princeton, tho!
University of Virginia, and Johns',
Hopkins University, lie studied under j
many masters, tut none so strongly'
influenced Iiis intellectual "development j
us his father.
Dr. Joseph Wilson was a man ot uii- ;
usuul force- Iii speech and action, Im- '
patient ot dulness, mote Impatient of !
loose thinking and careless speaking, j
lie was accustomed to say that men !
who were slovenly In conversation j
could not expect to be Impressive in
publ*C epcecs . His own private talk
ahowed that he practiced his theory.
Without pedantry or sclf-conso'ous
ncss. he spuke in words of weight |
Which measured thoughts of value. I
Even his badinage was memorable. I
Ills conversation was never bookish, j
out always revealed the man trained
to think atid to speak.
Tho point is dwelt upon because It
was the discipline this man gave bis j
son, added to tho son's native capacity, j
that assisted that distinction In
thought and speech which ail persons
of discrimination remark on Woodrow
Wilson's utterances, publls or pri?
vate, it is frequently said; "There Is
r.o use in trying to argue with Wood- j
row Wilson?he defeats all opponents."
Every man likes to do what he does
Well, and Woodrow Wilson may some- j
times, like Dr. Johnson, "talk for vie- '
lory"; but, being a busier man than j
Ur. Johnson, he usually talks in order
to dispose of business. By supplement?
ing his early training with the study
of law, he has learned how to go to
the core ot a question, strip It of ull (
remote relationships, and express his
conclusions clearly and convincingly. |
In Iiis earlier writings he cultivated
literary style, but in later years ne I
hus written and spoken with little j
premedation of phraseology. His vo> I
cabulary la large and under command, |
and his sense of word-values is un- j
erring. Art has become unconscious. !
and lie blends matter und manner as j
they must be blended for ull finest of- I
lei t.-, in spoken or written discourse. |
One is occasionally struck by an un- j
usual word, but close attention shows ?
that Woodrow Wilson is not a word
monger, but a word-matter.
lie passed through the freshman
class In Davidson Colleg? and then 1
Went to Princeton for four years, be- 1
Ing graduated with the class of 1SJS. j
The mo-, e- was fortunate, for it gave i
li'm at an Impressionable age an op- !
portunlty to understand the Northern.]
as well us the Southern, point of view,
and prepared the way fur the breadth j
oi sympathy that has been so marked !
in blii historical writings. Books, j
archives, and documents guve lilm his |
material, but f'rst-hand uridcrstand
Ing of both sections enabled him to j
write the history of the great conflict j
between the States in such a manner j
that his books have practically never I
been charged with Sectionalism from j
either side. He was among the earlier '
young Southern men to see clearly j
that the South was In fact us in name 1
a part of the Union, that th.> glory of
its history never was to be forgotten,
its secession never to be apologied for.
that Its great tragedy was sweetened
by valor und patience, but that unless
the tragedy was to be futtlely pro?
longed tbe tsOUth must throw in Its
lot heartily with the Union. Five or
tlx years after graduation he wrote in
his first book: "Whether these sec?
tions [the East, the South, and the
West] are to bo harmonious or dis?
sentient depends almost entirely upon
the methods and policy of tho Federal
government. If that government be
not careful to keep within 'ts own
proper sphere, and prudent to square
its policy by rules of national welfare,
sectional lines must und will be
known; citizens of one part of the
country may look with Jealousy and
even with hatred upon their fellow
citizens of another part; and faction
must tear and dlssentlon distract a
country which Providence would bless,
but which man may curse."
It was thus that the young political
philosopher, born and bred In the
South and educated in the North, saw
that the prosperity of each ecct'on
lies In the Integrity of the whole.
It was, however, with no premedlt-4
tion of being a historian that he went
North. He remained Southern by in?
stinct, and Intended to merge his for?
tunes with those of tho South. With
this intent he studied law for a little
less than two years (1879-1880) at the
University of Virginia, und then prac?
ticed law In Atlanta. Ga.; but after
about two years he found that prac?
tical law did not satisfy his Intel?
lectual hunger. What most lawyers
take for granted were the things he
most wished to know, not merely what
the law is, but how it came to bo what
it is. its origins and history. In brief. i
it was philosophy of law and politics
that attracted him. So in 1883 he re- .
Solved to go to Johns Hopkins Uni?
versity In Baltimore, then entering
upon its most brilliant period, the ob?
jective of young men front ail over the
country, avid lor knowledge and the
careers to which knowledge would
lead. While Fellow In History at
Johns Hopkins he wrote and publish-''
od (1S?.5) h.'s f'rst book. "Congres?
sional Government; a Study in Ameri?
can PoPtlca," This book drew a con?
trast between the theory of the. Con?
stitution and politlcn) practice under
the Constitution; showed that instead
of tho "cheeks and balances" of the
earlier theory there had been "a con?
stant growth of legislative and admin?
istrative practice and a steady accre?
tion of precedent In the mnnngement
Of Federal affairs." and that "the
centre and source of all motive and of
all regulative power Is Congress";
pointed out the waste that results
from a lack of co-ordination between
tho branches of the Federal govern?
ment, and n jack of Cjblnet roapon
?Ibll'ty. "As at present constituted,
the Federal government lacks strength
bei an:., Its powers nr?- divided, lacks
promptness because its authorities nre
mult'plled. lacks wlcldiness because
Its. processes nro roundabout, lacks ef
?oloncy because Us responsibility Is j
. Indistinct and Its action without com- |
potent direction." In his latest book. (
"Constitutional Government In the
United States" (l&OS). he shows bow
authority and responsibility have
tended to centre In tho Executive.
On June 24. 1S85. he married Ellen
Louise Axson, of Savannah. (??. How
much bin sneers* has been forwarded
by her sympathy and wisdom Is not
yet a matter ol public record. Three
daughters were- born to Mr. and Mrs.
Wilson.
In 1S85 Mr. Wilson began his pro- I
fcsslon of teaching as a member of
the small but able faculty of By in
Mawr College. After three years there
us professor of history and political
economy, he accepted a similar pro?
fessorship In VVcSleyan University, \
MlddlotOWn, Conn, lie remained there
two years, ami In ISOo was called (o
his alrna mater. Princeton, as profes- ,
sor of Jurisprudence and political econ?
omy. Ills title was changed to pro?
fessor of Jurisprudence in 1896, and
again In \V.<" to professor of Jurispru?
dence and politics. In l'.'H'j he was
elected president of Princeton Univer?
sity. His academic titles, in course
and honorary, have been numerous. A
year after leaving Johns Hopkins
(1886) ho took his Ph.D. degree oil ex?
amination. sUbmltt'ng as his thesis
?'Congressional Government,'1 He has
received the honorary degree of I.I.D.
from Wake Korest, Titiane, Johns
Hopkins, Rutgers, University of Penn?
sylvania. Brown, and Harvard, and the
honorary degree of Lltt.D. from Yale.
When Dr. \i iison came to the presi?
dency of Princeton he; was known ,
throughout tho country as an author
and public speaker, but he was untest?
ed as an executive ofiicer. Men "thought
him fit to govern." It remained to be
seen whether or not the rest of tho
proverb would apply. "If only he had
never tried to govern." The years
have proved him. In his presidential
office he has carried out the Idea of i
leadership which he pronounced In h's
first book, and has held ever since.
In ofllce and out Of office. A leader
is responsible to his constituency, but I
so long as he Is leader he must lead. I
Dr. Wilton has little pleasure In the
orr.amental aspect of office. He Is not !
satisfied to be "Mr. President." and
let the machine run Itself. He has
visions, and ho has the w'll powe- to
realise the visions. Ho will argue with
a man who ha.) other views than his.
but he will not argue long with a man ;
who has so many views that he car.
hot tee In which direction to move.
He never hag suffered from the
scholar's paralysis of will, and he has
no prolonged patience with those who
are so afflicted. To get things done,
and to get them done ?fter tho pat- |
tern of the vision. Is his practical i
philosophy. He has been known to
eiuote with approval the motto of i
Carlylea "Latter-Day Pamphlets":
""Then." said his lordship, 'will Ood
men dall'? 'Nay. by God, Donald we
must )?>lp him to mend 1*..' said the i
other "
When he came Into office he saw
that things were to bo done, directly
for Princeton, indirectly and at lanju !
tor education In America. The air
was noisy with pedagogical theories
as ?<> how young people should he
taught, To President Wilson the
problem seemed not so much pedagogl- i
>al as human and governmental. It
was, in his view, not so important
what rhould be taught as It was that J
young minds And characters should
grow naturally while in close contact I
with matcurcr mlr.ds. Coiiego organ'
nations, no bad things In themselves,
and the social life of the college were
occupying not only the most part, but
also the best part of undergraduate at?
tention. To these things lectures nnd
examinations were unwelcome Inter?
ruptions. In the larger colleges, at
any rate, the processes of education
were growing too Impersonal and
casual to be effective. So the now
famous preceptorial system w-as pro?
posed nnd adopted, whereby students
and teachers are brought into inti?
mate relationship, not formally as
master and pupil, but informally, as
friends who sit down to discuss the
things of the mind.
H He then went further and proposed
.something which seemed radical, but
was in reality a corollary to the pre?
ceptorial system, a complete reorgani?
zation of the university in such a way
us to co-ordinate the intellectual and
social life of the place, bringing Into
communities and du'ly companiousnlp
representatives of all classes and jf
the faculty. The proposal ran counter
to the traditions of Princeton: It vio?
lated privilege ffor the breaking up
of self-elective clubs was necessary to
the plan); it sounded a startling note
of democrncy to a country which was
losing some of its old passion for
democracy. So there was a confl'ct,
the issue of which Is, at this writing,
still on the knees of the gods. But,
whatever happens. Princeton never
Will be what it would have been
without Woodrow Wilson. It will be
something belter. Moreover, he has
made a lasting Impression on Ameri?
can Ideas and Ideals of education. Men
of the. present and of the future will
reckon with him, ever, when they do
not agree with his views. He hau
brought to edueiitlor.al problems the
mind of n statesman as well as the
mind of an educator. At a time when
the American college Is on trial before
the country, indicted for not giving
any adequate preparation for the great
business of citizenship, this student of
affairs and man of action has pointed
out broad ways by which the youth
of the country may be brought up for
the service of tho country.
This may indicate the sterner s'de
of Woodrow Wilson's nature, the man
of convictions and resolute will. There
Is a very gentle side of him. known to
all who come in close contact with
him. Slowly tho students are finding
this, and to their admiration for h'm
they add affection. They would be
dull Indeed if they did not catch a
glimpse of the inward man In such
accents as these?a passage from a
recent baccalaureate address, gentle
words which are the more impressive
from a man whose usual habit of
speech Is firm and m'lltant.
, "To one deep fountnln of revelation
I and renewal few of you.. I take It for
granted, have had access yet?I mean
j the fountain of sorrow, p. fountnln
sweet or bitter according as li is
I drunk In submission or In rebellion.
In love or In resentment and deep dis?
may. I win not tell you of these
waters; If you have not tasted them,
it would bo futile, and some of :>uii
will understand without word of mine.
I can only heg that when they nro
put to your lips, as they must be. you
Will drink of thorn as those who seek
j renewal, and know how to make of
1 sadness a mood of enlightenment nnd
of hope."
Of the literary style of this It Is
hardly necessary to speak. "This kind
can come forth by nothing but by
prayer and fasting." or. to speak lit?
erally, by nothing but literary gift
brought under discipline. Woodrow I
Wilson war. a faithful servant of let?
ters until the presidency of the unlver- '
slty so occupied his time us to give
hlni only btlel and broken hours for i
writing. ,
.Since 1845, the dato of the produc?
tion of "Congressional Government,"
he has published the following books:
"The Ktate ' (18?9),-"Division and Re- j
union" (189.1). "An Old Master, and !
Othei Political Essays" (lS'Jii). "Mere
Literature and Other .Essays" (l1-'.";;.
"Ueorge Washington" '(1896), "A His?
tory v.: tiie American People" ((Ho yol
umes: 1902); "Constitutional Govern?
ment 'II tile United States" (190X). Be- j
h'.ii these, there are many uncollect- :
ed . >! ij'a and addresses, published In j
magazines, reviews and brochure's.
In an essay entitled "The Truth of
the Matter" (published In the volume |
culled "Mere Literature"). Woodrow !
Wilson set forth dearly his concep- j
tlon of the lilMeulan's business. For !
dry-as-dust. the mere investigator, ho i
had Just that respect which all have
for Industry as a itjparato virtue, on ?
the other hand, he calls those his
torians "shallow fellows" who seek
"dramatic" tor Its own sake. It
is Imagination, not that which Invents
but that which perceives the under- I
lying truth of things, which the his- |
torlan needs, to kindle his facts Into I
life, to give the picture as a whole, I
to sot the past as one who knew tho .
pust.
The value of his historical method ,
and its application must be clodded at
a later time. But he who reads tho
Mftorles knows that Dr. Wilson's
books "recover a past sue: make dead
generations live again and breathe
?heir own air." His sympathetic rc
creatlve method is seen In its simplest
form In such passages of the life of
Washington : s describe Colonial Hie
in Virginia, or the last days and death
of the great general. When the au j
thor's father r?ad the rjulet words that 1
describe with the calm of suppressed ?
feeling the death of Washington, ho :
said: "Woodr?W, 1 am glad you let i
George Washington do his own dying."
Tho deeper-lying effects of this pen- |
etratlve. imaginative method of deal
Ing with history may be seen In his
"Division and Itcunion" and his large .
"History of the American People." Jn ?
these imagination and reason sit to- i
gother, sympathy and Judgment con?
trol ea?h other. In such contrast as |
h? draws In the larger work between
the democracy of Thomas Jefferson
General Ja-.-kson we ace the
shrewd Insight Into human eharnctc-r.
the right estimate of the temper of
the people, the delicate separation of
supergrowth and tissue?things tem?
porary and thinss destined to shape j
the nat'on. In both works, t.-.e story
of the war and the events which led |
to It make a very human story, and
an extraordinarily Just estimate of
men. motives and principles. In "The
Truth of the Matter" he wrote of
Macaulay: '.'We detect the tone of the \
advocate, and though If we are *ust |
we must detm him honest, we cannot
(i?m him safe." It Is not the advocate
but the judge who wrote the accounts
cf the War Between the States m the
tw,> nistorles, a dispassionate but not
a d'siritercsted Judge, one with power
to understand those motives of men
which create epochs, to understand
them as if he had lived with these
men of both sides: he sees in them
soundness and frailty, faith and un
faith, touches of charlatanry und
visions of statesmanship. He Judges I
the m not by tho standard or tho ac?
complished event, that futile sort of
history which makeii children and
tolles of all foregone gencracons,
but Judges them in the light of the
l.dons of their day. the obscure j
light in which all men work before I
the closed doors of the future, for only j
afterthought is certain. He writes as ,
one " who understands not only m?n. \
but institutions; sees clearly how tho :
interpretation.-, of the Const'tutlon dl j
verged under different economic con?
ditions :it the South and the North."
it is interesting that a man so ardent j
and i<o capable of convictions could |
write so judicially. Uut the imagi?
nation, the sympathy, and tho lit- j
er.;i v quality preserve tho human noto
in all the narrative. ' Division ana ]
Reunion" Is remarkable In that its
compact pages contain so much of i
facts and dates that it can be used
as a referenco book, and is yet at tho
st.me time a piece ot literature. Both
the histories were wr'tten by a pro?
fessional historian, a professional stu?
dent of polities, and a professional
man of letters.
Edmund Burki and Walter Bagehot
have been his manors, in so far as
a man of Independent mind can be
said to have masters; and It is note?
worthy that both wrote of human gov?
ernment in mustorful English, and
were literary artists us well as poli?
tical philosophers. Of both these men
Woodrow Wilson has published appre?
ciative essays In his volume of essays
entitled ".Mere Literature." This book
and "An Old Master" contain such of
Mr. Wilson's essays as have been col?
lected, i'lost of these essays are on
the borderland between politics and
literature, but in them there is more
of the personal note than would have
been allowable In the histories and the
works on government.
In 1910 Dr. Wilson, by a vote of 709
out of 745 in tlie first ballot 'h the
convention, w-as made the Democratic
candidate for the governorship of New
Jersey, largely through the Influence
of ex-Un'icd States Senator James
Smith, jr.. and "Bob" Davis, of Jersey
City, the principal bosses of the New
Jersey Democracy. He imedlatuly re?
signed the presidency of Princeton.
Smith, by this move, hoped to elect
Wilson and then climb over his back
to the Senate again. During the rum
'palgn Dr. Wilson expressly declared
that he would not stand for Smith. He
avowed that he himself would control
'the Democrats of New Jersey if elect?
ed, and that ho would know no man
I higher up. He was elected Governor
'In the fall of 1510, changing a Repub?
lican plurality of S.013 into a Demo
cratle plurality of #9,056, going Into
office ns the first Democratic Gover?
nor in eighteen years Ills plurality
was ?49.051. although two yearB before
Taft had carried the State by a plural?
ity of S2.000.
Wilson was elected to office after
having made neither pledges not prom?
ises, "absolutely free" to serve the
i people "with singleness of purpose."
obligated to no persons or group of
persons. James Smith, Jr.. immediate?
ly announced that he desired election
t i the United States Senate, hut James
E. Martine had heen selected lit the
primaries by the Democrats for thut
Place and Governor Wilson insisted on
his election, and despite the desperate
efforts of the machine for Smith. Mar
tine, a poor farmer, was elected by a
voto of 4? to 4 for Smith. Governor
Wilson's Inaugural address was pow?
erful and consrtuctlve. recommending
many progressive laws. He regarded
himself the party leader In the Stale,
and did not propose to look upon the
legislative and executive deparir.-.ents
as separate. He look upon himself
'tho responsibility for causing the I.og
(Continued on Tenth Page.)
I
Baltimore, July 2.?Tho full text of ,
the platform adopted by the Demo
! cratlo National Convention is as fol
j tows:
We. the representatives of the D.m
1 ocratlc party of the United States, In
; national convention ussombled, r?-af
I rlrm our devotion to the prlnclphjs of
I Democratic government formulated by
Thomas Jefferson and enforced hy a
long and Illustrious lino of Democratic
presidents.
Tarif! Reform.
We declare it to ho a fundamental
j principle of the Democratic p-irty that
the Federal government under the Con?
stitution has no right or power to Ini
: pose or collect tariff duties, except fot
! tho purpose of revenue, and we demand
! tout the collection of such taxes shall
! be limited to the necessities pi govern
honesty and economically admin
, istered.
The high Republican tariff is the p'rln
i eaiIHe ol the uunjunl lilstrlbu
! tlon of wealth: it Is a system of taxa
i lion which makes the rich richer and
I the poor poorer, under Its operations
I the American farmer and laboring man
are the chief sufferers: It raises the
! cost of the necessaries of life to them,
! but does not protect their product or
j wages. The farmer sells largely In
j free markets and buys almost entirely
'in the protected markets. In the most
nlghly protected Industries such as cot
| ton and fool, steel and Iron, the wages
of the laborers are the lowest paid
In any of our Industries. We denounce
the Republican pretense on that sub
I .lest and assert that American wages
i are established by competitive condl
i tinns and not by the tariff.
! Wo favor the immediate downward
I revision of the existing high and. In
! many cases, prohibitive tariff duties,
j Insisting that material reductions be
! speedily made upon the necessaries of
j life. Articles entering Into competl
[ tlon with trust controlled products
I and nrticlcs of American manufacture
i which are sold abroad more cheaply
than at home, should be put upon the
free list.
We recognise that our system of
?: ? xn?|on is intimately connected
with the business of tho country, and
we favor the ultimate attainment of
,?!??* .ye advocate by legis?
lation that will not Injure or destroy
legitimate industry.
We denounce the action of Presi?
dent Taft in vetoing the bills to re?
duce the tariff in tho cotton, woolen,
metals and chemU'al schedules and the
farmers free list bill, all of which
were designed to give Immediate re?
lief to the masses from tho exactions
of the trusts.
The Republican party, while prom?
ising tariff revision, has shown by tts
tariff legislation that such revision is
not to be in the peoples interest and
having been faithless to Its pledges
! of I'JOS It should no longer enjoy thu
confidence of the nation. We appeal
to the American people to support us
In our demand for a tariff for revenue
only.
High Com of Living.
The high cost of living Is j serious
problem in every American home. Tile
Republican party. In Its platform, at
I tempts to escape from responsibility
for present conditions by denying that
; they are due to a protective tariff.
! We take issue with them <\\ this sub
j Ject and charge that excessive prices
j result In a large measure from the high
i tariff laws enacted nn.i maintained by
CANDIDATE FOR VICE-PRESIDENT
OOVE HNOR THOMAS H. MARSHALL, OP INDIANA.
PLATFORM ON WHICH DEMOCRATS
_WILL GO BEFORE THE COUNTRY
the Republican party and from trusts j
j and commercial conspiracies fostered J
and encouraged by such laws, and we,
assert that no substantial relief can bo |
secured for the people until Import
duties on the necessaries of life are
materially reduced and theso criminal
conspiracies broken up.
Anta-Trust Law.
A private monopoly la indefensible '
and intolerable. Wo therefore favor
the vigorous enforcement of the crlm- i
Inal as well as the civil law against
trusts and trust officials and demand
the enactment of such additional legis?
lation as may be necessary to niako
It Impossible for a private monopoly
to exist in the United States.
We favor the declaration by law of
the conditions upon which corpora?
tions shall bo permitted to engage in
interstate trade, Including. among
c?thcrs. the prevention of holding com?
panies, of Interlocking directors, of
I stock watering, of discrimination in
price, and the control by any one cor
! poratlon of so largo a proportion of
j any industry as to make it a menace
j to competitive conditions.
We condemn the action of the Repub?
lican administration in compromising
with the Standard Oil Company and the
i Tobac-.-o Trust and its failure to Invoke
, the criminal provisions of the anti?
trust law against the officers of those
I corporations after the court had de
: Glared that from tho undisputed facts
; In the record they had violated the
criminal provisions of the law.
Wo regret that tho Sherman anti?
trust law has received a judicial con?
struction depriving It of much of Its
efficacy and we favor the enactment of
' legislation which will restore to tho
statute the strength of which It has
been deprived by such Interpretation.
ttlBhta of the "-t?te*.
?We believe In the preservation and
maintenance In their full strength and
integrity of the three co-ordinate
branches of the Federal government?
the executive, the legislative and the
Judicial?each keeping within its own
bounds and not encroaching upon the
Just powers of either of the others.
Believing that the most efficient re?
sults under our system of government
are to b? attained by tho full exer?
cise by tho states of their reserved
sovereign powers, we denounce as
usurpation the efforts of our opponents
to deprive the statvs of any of the
rights reserved to them, and to en
, largo and magnify by indirection the
powers of the Federal government.
I Wo insist upon the full exercise of
all tho powers of the government, both
.-tale and national, to protect the peo?
ple from Injustice at the hands of
those who seek to make the govern?
ment a private asset In business. There
Is no twlltglu zone between the na?
tion and the state. In which exploit?
ing Interests can take refuge from
both. It Is as necessary that the Fed?
eral government shall oxcrclso tho
powers reserved to them, but we In?
sist that Federal remedies for the reg?
ulation Of interstate commerce and for
the prevention of private monopoly
shall be added to and not substituted
for state, remedies.
lacunae Tux and Popular Election ot
Senators,
j We congratulate the country upon
the triumph of two Important reforms
[demanded In the last national plat
' form, namely, the amendment of tho
Federal Constitution authorizing an In?
come lax and the amendment provid?
ing for the popular election of Sena?
tors, and we call upon the people "f
j all the Slates to rally to the support
of the pending propositions and secure
their ratification.
We note With gratification the unan?
imous sentiment In favor of publicity
before the election, of campaign con?
tributions?a measure demanded in our
national platform of 1008 ami at that
time opposed by the Republican party
?ami we commend the Democratic
iious,- of Representatives for extend?
ing the doctrine of publicity to recom?
mendations, verbal and written, upon
wnicn preMldentl.il appointments me
made, to the ownership und ?mtrol
ot newspapers and to the expenditures
made by and In behalf of those who
aspire to presidential nominations, and
We point for additional Justification
for this legislation to the enormous
expenditures of money in behalf of
the president and his predecessor in
the recent contest for the Republican
nomination for President,
Presidential Prlninrles.
The movement towards more popu?
lar government shoult he promoted
through legislation in each State which
will permit the expresslou of the pre?
ference of the electors for national can?
didates at presidential primaries.
We direct that the National Commit?
tee Incorporate in the call for the next
nominating convention a requirement
that all expressions of preference for
presidential candidates shall be niv.-u
und the selection of delegates and al?
ternates made through a primary elec?
tion conducted by the party organiza?
tion in each state where such expres?
sion und election are not provided for
by State law. Commttteemen who are
hereafter to constitute the membership
of the Democratic National committee
and whose election Is not provided for
by law shall be chosen In each State
at such primary elections, an.! the ser?
vice and authority of committcomen
however chosen, shall begin Immediate?
ly upon tho receipt of their creden?
tials respectively.
Campaign Contributions.
We pledge tlie Democratic party to
the enactment of a law prohibiting
any corporation from contributing to u
campaign fund and any Individual from
I contributing any amount above i roa?
< sonablc maximum.
Term of President,
We favor a single presidential term,
and to that end urge the adoption of
an amendment to the constitution
making the President of tho United
States Ineligible for re-election, nnd
we pledge the candidate of this con?
vention to this principle.
Democratic < ongree?.
At this time, when ihc Republican
party, after a generation Of unlimited
power In Its ontrol of the Federal
government. Is rent into factions. It
Is opportune to point to the record
of accomplishment of tne Democratic
House of Representatives in the Sixty
second Congress, We Indorse its ac?
tion and we challenge comparison of
Its record with that of any Congress
which has been controlled by our op?
ponents
We call the attention of the patriot?
ic tltizeus of our country to Its record
of efficiency, economy nnd constructive
legislation.
It has, among other a.-hlevemonts,
revised the rules of the House of Rep?
resentatives so as to give to the rep?
resentatives of tho American people
freedom "f speech and of actl.'m H) ad?
vocating, proposing and perfecting
remedial legislation.
, It tins passed bills for the. relief of
th.j people and tho development of our
country; It has endeavored to rcvlso
tho tariff taxes downward In the in?
terest of the consuming masses, and.
thus to reduce the high cost of liv?
ing.
it has proposed on amendment to th*
Federal Constitution providing for ths
election of United States Senators by;
tho direct voto of the people.
It has secured the admission ot Ari?
zona, and New Mexico as two sovereign
States.
It has required the publicity of cam?
paign expenses both before and after
election and llxcd a limit upon the elec?
tion expenses of United States Senators
and Representatives.
It has also passed a bill to prevent
tho abuse of the writ ot injunction.
It haj passed a law establishing an
eight-hour day for workmen on all na?
tional public work.
It lias passed a resolution which
forced the President to take Immediate
steps to abrogate the Russian treaty.
And It has passed the great supply
bills which lessen waste and extrava?
gance and which reduce the annual
expenses of the government by many,
millions ot dollars.
We approve, the measure reported
i by the Democratic leaders Jn the House.
I of Representatives for the creation of
j a council of national defense, which
will determine a definite naval pro?
gram with, a view to Increased effi?
ciency and economy. The party that
I proclaimed and has always enforced
! the Monroe Doctrine, and w-us sponsor
for tho new navy, will continue, faith?
fully to observe the constitutional re?
quirements to provide and maintain an
adequate ani well-proportioned navy,
sufficient to defend American policies,
protect our citizens and uphold tho
honor and dignity of tho nation.
Republican Extrai ngance.
We denounce the profligate waste
of tile money wrung from the peoplo
by the oppressive taxation through the
lavish appropriations ot recent Repub?
lican Congresses. which have kept
taxes high, and reduced the purchas
? ing power of the people's toll. We
.demand a return to that simplicity
und economy which befits a Demo?
cratic government, and a reduction
in the number of useless offices, the
I salaries of which drain the substance
I of the people.
Railroads, Express Companies, f.dr
graph aud Telephone Lines.'
1 We favor tnc efficient supervision
I and rate regulation of railroads, ex?
press companies, telegraph and tele?
phone lines engaged In Interstate com
; inercc. To this end we recommend the
: valuation of railroads, express com?
panies, telegraph and telephone lines
by the Interstate Commerce Commis?
sion, such valuation to take into con?
sideration the physical value of tho
property, the original cost, the cost of
reproduction, and any element of value
' that will render the valuation fair and
Just.
We fnvor such legislation as will ef?
fectually prohlbt tile railroads, ex?
press, telegraph and telephone com
? pit nies from engaging In business
I which brings thoni Into competition
t with their shippers, or patrons; also
legislation preventing the overissue of
! stocks und bunds by Interstate fall'?
I roads, express companies, telegraph
and telephone lines, and legislation
Which Will assure such reductions In
transportation rates us conditions will
'Permit, cure being taken-to avoid re
ductton that would compel a reduc?
tion of wages, prevent adequate ser- ?
vice, or do Injustice to legitimate In?
vestments.
Uauklng Legislation.
We oppose the so-called Adrlch b'U
i or the establishment of a central
'bank, and we bollevo the people of
. the country will be largely freed
? from panics and consequent unemploy
' ment and business depression by such
a .systematic revision of our banking
laws ?'.; will render temporary relief
In localities where such relief is need?
ed, with protection from control or
dominion by what is known as tho
money trust.
Hanks exist for the accommodation
of the public and not for the control
of business. All legislation on tho
subject of banking and currency
should have for its purpose tho se?
curing of these accommodations on
terms of absolute security to the pub?
lic and of complete roiectioh from tho
misuse of tne power that wealth gives
to those who possess it.
We condemn the resent methods of
depositing government funds In a few
favored banks, largely situated In or
controlled by Wall Street. In return
for poitleal favors, and we pledge our
party to provide by law for their de?
posit t>y competitive bidding in the
banking institutions of the country,
national and state, without discrimi?
nation us to locality upon approved
securities and subject to call by tho
government.
Rural credits.
Of equal importance w'th the ques?
tion of currency reform 1c the ejues
tlon of rural credits or agricultural
llnance. Therefore wo recommend that
I an Investigation of agricultural credit
.societies In torelgn countries be made,
so that 't may ie ascertained whether
a system of lural credits may be de?
vised suitable to conditions In the
United States; and wo also favor legis?
lation permitting national banks to
loan a reasonable, proportion of their
fund* oh real estate security.
Wo recognize the value of voca
I t'onal education and urge Federal ap
propjflat'ous for such training and
extensive teaching In agriculture in
co-operation with the several States,
u atervt ay*.
We renew the declaration in out
last platform relating to the conser?
vation of our natural resources and th?
development of our Waterways. Thai
present devastation of the lower Mis?
sissippi Valley accentuates the move?
ment for the regulation of river flow
by additional bank and levee protec?
tion below the diversion, storage and
control of the flood waters above and the
utilization for the benutlctal purpose*
In the reclamation of arid and swa.mp
lands and the development of water
power instead of permitting the floods
to continue, as heretofore, agents of
destruction.
We hold that the control of the Mls
s'tslppl River Is a national problem.
Tho preservation of thu depth of Its
water for the purpose of navigation,
the building 'of Idevees to maintain
the Integrity of its channel, and the
prevention of the overflow ot the land
and Its consequent dovartatlon. result?
ing In the Interruption of lntersUits
commerce, the disorganization of th?
mail serviert and the enormous loss ol
life and property Impose, an obligation
which alone can be discharged by th?
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