The Jeffersonian. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1917, April 09, 1908, Image 1

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THE JEFFERSONIAN Vol. 111. No. 15. WATSON NAMED TOR PRE RY POPULISTS St. Louis, Mo., April 3. —For president of the United States, Thomas E. Watson, of Georgia. For vice president of the United States, Samuel Williams, of Indiana. The foregoing ticket was nominated today by the people’s party convention, after two stormy sessions, during which the Nebraska and the Minnesota delegations bolted because they could not procure a postponement of the convention until after the nominations had been made by the democratic convention, so that the people’s party might nominate W. J. Bryan for president, if he were defeated at the democratic convention. The Nebraska men fought desperately to the last, and when Jay W. Forrest, of Albany, N. Y., mounted the platform to place Watson in nomination, they withdrew from the con vention, followed by the Minnesota delegation, which consisted of one man, T. J. Weighan. If Bryan is nominated at Denver, the men who walked out of today’s convention say that they and the populists of Nebraska will support him to a man. How Nebraska Lost Out. The downfall of Nebraska came swiftly in the afternoon and into a pit they themselves had digged the delegation from Nebraska tumbled. They were filibustering against a nomination for president, when Jos. A. Par ker, of Louisville, begged leave to ask “a couple of questions” of Nebraska. Parker desired to know whether the Ne braskans were working for the nomination of Bryan. They said they were not. He then read from Bryan’s paper a plank from the platform of the Nebraska populist state con vention indorsing Bryan, and wanted to know whether they stood by it. The Nebraskans parried the question, but Parker insisted on a categorical answer. The Nebraska delegates finally admitted that they favored Bryan. From that instant Bryan’s cause in the con vention was lost. Debate on the proposal to postpone the con vention and the discussion of the phraseology of the money plank in the platform consumed the greater part of the day. The discussion was long but all the oratory went for naught, as the plank adopted was that recommended by the resolutions committee. The platform was adopted as reported from the committee on resolutions. Mr. Watson was not present, but Mr. Wil liams returned thanks to the convention in a brief speech, in which he promised to do all things possible for the success of the ticket. Ferris Heads National Committee. At a meeting tonight of the new national committee, James B. Ferris, of Joliet, 111., A Weekly Paper Edited by THOS. E. WATSON and J. D. WATSON. Atlanta, Ga., Thursday, April 9, 1908. was re-elected chairman and of Albany, N. Y., was chosen .. ~ The platform, after setting forth government has been controlled so as to placv the rights of property above the rights of hu manity, and that financial combinations have exerted too much power over congress, gives the position of the party on finance as fol lows : “The issuing of money is a function of gov ernment and should not be delegated to cor poration or individual. The constitution gives to congress alone the power to issue money’ and regulate the value thereof. We there fore demand that all money shall be issued by the government direct to the people, with out the intervention of banks, and be a full legal tender for all debt's, public and private, and in quantities to supply the necessity of the country. We demand that postal savings banks be instituted for the savings of the people. ’ ’ Alien ownership of public lands is opposed, and lands now held by aliens or by corpora tions which have violated the conditions of their grants should be restowdLto the public domain. Government ownership of railroads is urged on the ground that that policy would prevent unjust discriminations. , Also that in order to perfect the post#} service the government should own and operate the general telegraph and telephone systems and provide a parcels post. To Curb the Trusts. “As to those trusts and monopolies which are not public utilities or natural monopolies we demand that these special privileges which they now enjoy and which alone enable them to exist, should be immediately withdrawn. Corporations being the creatures of govern ment should be subjected to such government al regulation and control as will adequately protect the public. We demand the taxation of monopoly privileges, while they remain in private hands,, to the extent of the value of the privilege granted. “We demand that congress shall enact a general law uniformly regulating the powers and duties of all incorporated companies do ing interstate business. “As a means of placing all public ques tions directly under the control of the peo ple we demand that legal provision be made under which the people may exercise the ini tiative and referendum, and proportionate representation and direct vote for all public officers with the right of recall. Against Injunction Government. “We believe in the right of those who la bor to organize for their mutual protection and benefit, and encourage the efforts of the 'nle’s party to preserve this right invio s Cy We condemn the recent attempt to de the power of trade unions through the ist use of the federal injunctions substi tuting government by injunction for free gov ernment. ’ ’ The platform favors the enactment of legis lation looking to the improvement of condi tions of the wage earners, demands the abol ition of child labor and the suppressing of sweatshops, opposes the use of convict labor in competition with free labor, demands the exclusion from American shores of foreign pauper labor; favors the eight-hour day; de mands the enactment of an employers’ liabil ity bill within constitutional bounds; declares that, in times of depression when working men are thrown into an enforced idleness, works of public improvements should be at once inaugurated, emphasizes the declaration of the Omaha platform that “wealth belongs to him who creates it, and every dollar taken from labor without a just equivalent is rob •bery, ” and opposes gambling in futures. On the subject of injunctions the platform says: “We condemn all unwarranted assumption of authority of the inferior federal courts in annulling by injunction the laws of the sev eral states, and therefore demand of congress such legislation as shall inhibit such usurpa tion and restrict to the supreme court of the United States alone the exercise of this great power. ’ ’ —Atlanta Constitution. LABOR LEADER’S FAREWELL. John Mitchell, who had been for ten years at the head of the union representing the coal diggers of the United States and Canada, took his farewell of the men he has well served at the convention in Indianapolis, Ind., last week. There were 1,000 delegates pres ent representing the United Mine Workers, and it was evident in the scenes which fol lowed Mr. Mitchell’s leave-taking, how strong his hold had become. The formal proceedings ended with the singing of “My Country ’Tis of Thee,” and then followed the parting words of the retiring president. He conclud ed as follows: “My boys—and I will call you my boys, even though some of you are nearly twice as old as I am, I regard you as my boys—be as good union men now and in the time to come as you have been while 1 was directing your affairs. God bless you again! I am leaving this movement, not because I want to leave you, but because I have to leave you. I say to you now, gentlemen, may God bless our movement! May he look down on our (Continued on Page Twelve.) Price Five Cents.