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Commentaries On The Week’s Netos
The Graves-Bryan Episode.
One of the talked-about incidents of
the week was the speech made by
Col. J. T. Graves, editor of the Atlanta
Georgian, at the Chattanooga birthday
banquet to Hon. William Jennings
Bryan. Col. Graves gravely proposed
that Mr. Bryan should, in the next
national Democratic convention, arise
and nominate Theodore Roosevelt for
a third term in the presidential office.
The banqueters were amazed, but Mr.
Bryan was amused. Col. Graves was
serious, but on second thought he will
probably be glad to escape from the
episode by the joke route.
As. Mr. Bryan explains, he is com
mitted to the idea that no man should
hold the presidency for more than one
term and, besides, President Roose
velt is not democratic more than half
his time and what the nation needs
is a president who will be democratic
all his time!
The Peace Conference.
The Peace Conference in New York
this week brought together a great
many notable men who have set their
minds and hearts to work to bring
about tne establishment of a perma
nent peace tribunal at The Hague and
a program between nations that will
substitute arbitration for wars.
The logic and humanitarianism of
the scheme are beyond criticism and
the advancement the world is making
in the direction of arbitration of in
ternational issue is very marked and
gratifying.
The question growing out of the
Russo-Japanese treaty at Portsmouth,
is a plain one —why not arbitrate be
fore the war and its horrors rath
er than after them? The true militant
spirit of civilization favors the ante
bellum plan.
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE
“FIGHTING BILLY.
Editors Weekly Jeffersonian:
I have not joined the Farmers’
Union yet, but I intend to join it as
soon as it is organized near enough to
me for me to become an attentive,
visiting member. I note that Lon Liv
ingston, Fighting Billy Northen and
Harvie Jordan are not members, and
that is encouraging. Fighting Billy
was elected governor of Georgia by
the Alliance, and then deserted them;
Lon and his yard stick was elected to
congress by the Alliance, and he, too,
deserted, and Harvie has proven that
he is a better friend to Wall street
speculators than he is to the south
ern farmers. No Hoadlyite is a friend
to the southern farmer. If Harvie in
tended to work for the good of the
farmers, why did he get rid of Tom
Watson, who every farmer knows
is straight goods?
A leader cannot be a true friend to
organized farmers and at the same
time hold a winning hand with
organized speculators. And when you
find two organizations in the field,
both claiming that they are working
solely for the good of the people or
farmers, the way to designate between
the two is to watch which papers en
dorse them, and choose accordingly.
The last campaign in Georgia showed
The Thaw Case Verdict.
Although the Thaw jury disagreed
and was discharged, it nevertheless
found a verdict which the general
public understands and, in the main,
will approve.
A very sane and cosmopolite jury
refused to consider “the unwritten
law” in the case of Thaw and a major
ity of them refused to acquit him
on the ground of insanity, though that
ve’dict would have sent him to an
insane asylum.
The truth of the case is found in
the revelations from the jury room
and is that Thaw was sane enough
at the time he killed White to know
whom he was killing and for what rea
son, and that reason which he pre
sented to the jury was not an excuse
for murder that satisfied it he should
go free. Another trial of Thaw should
be shorter and the verdict quickly
reached, either for or againsi; him.
The Associated Press Trust.
A bill was introduced into the Ten
nessee legislature to make such news
associations as “The Associated Press”
common carriers. That means that
such associations shall not be allow
ed to select and combine newspapers
for the exclusive use of news items,
gathered and transmitted over tele
graph and telephone lines within the
state, and such associations as re
fuse to purvey to all newspapers alike
are to be associations in restraint of
trade and prohibitable. There is no
question of the monopoly features of
The Associated Press service and that
they restrain practically the freedom
of the press in the matter of trade in
news. But whether a mutual associa
tion can be such an unlawful combi
nation is an unsettled constitutional
conundrum.
every person who watched which
were the subsidized ring organs. Os
course, they tell us “You should organ
ize, but keep your organizations out
of politics, because that is what ruined
the Alliance.” I say it was not going
into politics that disrupted the Alli
ance; but it was taking cheap one
gallus politicians into the order that
hurt. Go into politics, yes; but keep
cheap, corrupt politicians from joining
the union.
Tom Watson was also elected to
congress by the Alliance vote, and he
stuck to the men who elected him.
Hence, the corrupt methods that were
used to defeat him in his other races,
and yet Mr. Watson did more for the
American people, the ruralist, the
farmers, the men who elected him,
than all the rule or ruin congressmen
combined. I remember before we had
rural delivery I traveled twelve miles
a week, or sixteen hundred a year,
after my mail, or I traveled enough to
break, plant and plow fifteen acres
in cotton, if I only plowed the cotton
three times. And then I could not af
ford to take a daily paper, now 1 take
two, and I am not the only man that
has been benefited by rural delivery.
In my opinion rural delivery helps
more people than all the Carnegie li
braries and Rockefeller donations com-
WATSON’S WLBRJI
The Georgia Railroad Case.
Mr. Jackson, an Ohio railway inspec
tor, selected by the Georgia Railroad
Commission to inspect the line and
equipment of the Georgia Railroad, has
made his report in which he declares
the road to be in as good condition
as the average of railroads in the
country at large. Hon. Bowdre Phin
izy, who appealed for the inspection,
declares Mr. Jackson’s work to have
been inexpert, superficial and a “white
wash” proceeding. It is certainly not
a satisfactory report to the general pat
rons of the road and it is up to the
railroad commission to reject the as
sailed report and satisfy itself as to
the true status of the road. Other
wise it may be necessary to have a
legislative committee do the work and
that might be embarrassing for both
the road and the commission.
A Very Dry Decision.
The Louisville and Nashville Rail
road Company, through one of its at
torneys, Hon. John E. Dußose, an
nounces that it will respect the laws
of all communities on its lines that
vote for the prohibition of the liquor
traffic.
It has decided to notify its agents
and servants not to transport intox
icating liquors of any kind or in any
quantity into prohibitory territory, no
matter whether the liquors are
shipped from a point within the state,
or from some other state.
This decision is one that every rail
road company can afford to make with
out loss of revenue. The money sent
out for whiskey would, if sent for
clothing, groceries, furniture, etc., pro
duce a larger volume of more profita
ble freights. The L. & N. is a wise
bird to stand on this decision.
bined. I want to see the people own
and control the railroads, same as
they do the mail service, waterways
and public roads.
The time is coming, and I want to
see it, when men who are raised here
among us, and are serving the money
power in another section, against the
interest of their own section and kin
dred, will have little or no following,
and no person will respect or confide
in them, and the subsidized papers
that live and thrive here among us
will have to look elsewhere for read
ers. Certain papers I could name that
are printed in Georgia are failing
badly, and must fail 01 improve. What
we want to do is to educate our people
not to bite at everything that is
thrown before them. Some papers yell
pessimist every time a person com
plains, no matter what the causes are.
On January 11 I ordered some plow
fixtures. They were shipped from the
factory at Springfield, Mo., consigned
to J. B. Howard, Adrian, Ga., now more
than two months since, and they have
not come to hand yet, while I have
been out of the use of my money and
the implements both. And some
sweet potatoes were shipped to the
same address from Hawkinsville, Ga.,
a distance of sixty-three miles, six
days since, and they, too, have not
Roosevelt and Tyler Too!
The suggestion that Roosevelt
should appoint the negro, Tyler, to
some fat federal office in Cincinnati,
as a come-back at Foraker, was vigor
ously approved by many southern
democratic newspapers. But Roose
velt was afraid of Ohio and instead
of appointing Tyler to an office out
there, he brought the coon to Wash
ington and has made him an auditor
in a government office where he is to
boss over twenty-five women clerks
and most of them are southern women
who, of necessity, have secured
those clerical positions.
It is now up to the southern dem
ocratic newspapers to comment some
more on Tyler’s eligibility and Roose
velt’s negrophilism.
We trust Col. Graves will be among
the first to tell us how this last trans
action of Roosevelt entitles him to
our support for another term as pres
ident?
A Notable Anniversary.
The 24th of this month is the 203rd
anniversary of the appearance of the
first American newspaper, called “The
News-Letter,” printed in Boston. It
contained largely local gossip, nation
al notes that were months’ old and
its news from Europe was six weeks
old when it reached the public eye.
If the old printer who set up and pull
ed off the first American “yellow
journal” could see the making of a
modern newspaper of today, he would
probably break his breeching back
ing away, while he exclaimed: "Great
Jehoshaphat, what people and what
a time!”
What railway freight extortion has
Roosevelt yet reformed and lowered?
been heard from by the agent at
Adrian or myself, either. Now, some
would likely tell me to take an opti
mistic view of all such gross neg
lect of duty or contract. But, unfor
tunately, I’m not built that way. I
used to think that a negro gave less
unreliable labor for the money he re
ceived than anything else. But for a
long time time I have been changed,
and I now think the railroads steer
farther from their contract with the
people than anything else, and are
most unreliable. Call me pessimist,
if you will, but my voice will be raised
as long as I live against such unjust
and one sided methods. I have a hand
of welcome for all who endorse equal
rights to all, and a kick for all who
stand for class privileges.
J. B. HOWARD.
AT LEAST 1,000 YEARS.
Editors Weekly Jeffersonian:
How long do you think the south can
hold the monopoly of the cotton supply
of the world?
JOHN C. WILLIAMS.
Jackson, Miss.
SHAKESPEARE UP TO DATE.
Some are born liars, some achieve
the art of lying, and some confer with
Roosevelt.