Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, September 17, 1894, Page 9

L e TWELVE PAGES " ESTABLISHED JUNE THE OMA s o EPTEMBER 17, 1894 ’['_\\'EL\'E 1 ISSUE OF THE HOUR Faroest Appeal to the High Moral Bense of Nebraska Voters, ] 'REPUBLICANISM VERSUS BOODLERISM” Tattosed Tom's Assanlts Upon the £ta‘e's Finanoial Credit, MAICRS AS A CORPORATION CAPPER 4 Bhall Railroad Managers Qontrol the State Governme:t? FHE EFFECTS OF RAILROAD DOMINATION E A Bit of Unwritten History About Unyindi- cated Richards. THAT FORGED CENSUS CERTIFICATE ¥ Majors’ Fart in the Abduction of State Sen- j ator Taylor, 4 THAT TAYLOR SALARY VOUCHER d ( i Majors’ Subserviency to the Beck of Railroad ] Lobby ste, HELPED TO DEFEAT A MAXIMUM RATE BILL ‘Jongrosa'onal Comnif Majors as a Falsifier. e Report Branding WAS RECOMMENDED FOR INDICTMENT The Railroad Fight Against t'e State Con- stitution of 1871, SOME INTERESTING POLITICAL HISTCRY Endless Etruggle to Thwart the Power of Corpotations, THE STATE MUST BE REDEEMED Domplete Stenographic Keport of Mr. Rose- water's Fremont Speech, Belng the Open- ing Gun in His Campaign Against Majors and Kallroadism. Saturday evening Mr. E. Rosewater de- fivered a political address at Fremont upon Xhe subject: “‘Republicanism versus Boodler- gsm.” Love's Opera house, the largest audi- forlum in the city, was growded. The audi- pnce was composed of representative men of « al) parties—democrats, populists, prohibi- 5 Aionists and all kindg of republicans. There was also a fair sprinkling of ladies present. It tas a representative meeting of represen- tive people, who listened to the speaker ith most respectful attention, according m_generous applause at frequent intervals. | “Hon. Samuel Maxwell, formerly chief jus- fico of the supreme court of Nebraska, in fntroducing the speaker, sald: 5 #The gentleman who will address you this pvening has been a citizen of this state for jriore than twenty-five years, and has labored jarnestly and continuously for the prosperity nd upbullding not only of Omaha, but the :q re stale; a man who from the first has Rdvocated government of the peopls, by the s E:ople. for the people, and insisted that the vernment of the state shall be conducted husiness principles, and that boodling and odlérs shall be excluded; a man who is fearless In the performance of what he be- Meves 1s his duty, and an earnest champlon E what he believes to be right. 1 introduce on. Edward Rosewater, editor of The Omaha e, ¢ Mr. Rosewater advanced to the front of the 4 Jtage, and was recelved with cheers by many pnthusiastic admirers. He spoke as follows: Mr. Chairman, Ladies end Gentlemen, and WFellow Citizens: The large gathering which confronts me here tonight, and the pro- 3 longed greeting which 1 have received at our hands, are abundant proof that the peo- + le of Fremont and the citizens of Nebraska are taking a deep interest in the issues that i pre pending before us in the present cam- palgn, The lssues enunciated as a text for me tonight are, “Republicanism, or Rail- 3 rondism.” 1 propose to uddress myself first - Ro republicans, to republicans who are stanch and conscientious advocates, and ! aho believe In the fundamental doctrines { and principles of the found:rs of the party. | § propose to address myself especlally to - young republicans, and the young men who ¥ ure about to cast their ballots this fall, per- haps for the first time, or who, at any rate, are not contaminated by the pernicious in- fluences that have sapped the very vitals of republican institutions and prevent the people from exercising a free, untrammeled ©chiolce of our public officials and representa- tives in the interest of good government B shall appeal to republicans who believe in the right of every man to cast his ballot as his conscience dictates, and are opposed g0 any despotism that enthralls the p . * and deprives them of the right of self-gov- ernment for which the revolutionary fathers struggled and staked their lives and for- tunes, and for which the soldiers who went 0 the war from 1861 to 65 fought, and for which today, when they are roused and be- ‘come conscious of the Issues, they will again etrike a blow for liberly by resisting the corporate power that seeks to dominate this | cowmonwealth, Now, to begin with, what Is a republic? lAccording to Webster, it is a government by the people, through representatives elected by their choice, acting in that bebalf, Are the peopls of Nebraska so governed? at 18 the question that confronts us today. jow what were the doctrines and the cardinal 4 meiples of the republican party, enunci- f ted by its founders and by successive na- Slonal conventions? REPUBLICAN DOCTRINE ‘As far back as 1800, following the adminis- tration of Washington, the true republicans of America expressed in a, very few words the principles that animated them in organ- fzing the first republican party: *'The freedom of speech and of the press, and opposition, fherefore, to all violators of the constitutio d 0 silence by force and not by reason the mpialuts, or oriticism, just or unjust, of our citizens against their public agent ] om of religion and opposition to all to bring about a legal ascendaucy over another. The liberty platform of 1843 reads as fol Yows: “Resolved, That freedom of speech and of the press, and the right of trial by Jury, are sacred and fnviolable, and that all rules, regulations and laws in derogation of either are oppressive, unconstitutional, and not to be endurtd by a free people.” The free soil platform of 1852—and you must re- member that the liberty party, the free soflers and the abolitionists formed the nencleus out of which the republican party of our day was formed—the free soil party made this declaration: “Resalved, That we inseribe upon our banner, free soil, free speech, free labor and free man, and that under it we will fight on and fight ever. That fight is going on as much today as it went on at the time that this declaration was made. (Applause.) The platform adopted by the republican national convention held fn_Phjladeiphia in 1856 declared: “Resolved, That the main- tenance of the principles promulgated in the Declaration of Independence, and embodied in the federal constitution, is essential to the preservation of our republican Institu- tions.” This resolution was also reiterated in the republican platform of 1860, by the convention that nominated Abraham Lincoln The platform of 1856 also declared: “That, while the constitution of the United State was ordained and established in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general wel fare and secure the blessings of liberty, and contains ample provisions for the protection of the life, liberty and property of every citizen, the deirest constitutional rights of the people have been fraudulently and vio lently taken from them; their teritory has been Invaded by an armed force; spurious and pretended legislation, judiclal and ex- ecutive officers have been set over them, by whoso usurped authority, sustained by the military power of the government, tyran- and unconstitutional laws have ‘been ted and enforced; the rights .of the people to keep and bear arms have been in- fringed upon, test oaths of an extraordinary 1 entangling nature have been imposed as a condition of exercising the right of suffrage and holding office; the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures has been violated; they have been deprived of life, liberty and property, without due process of law; that the freedom of specch and of the press has been abridged; the right to choose their representatives has been made of no effect.” SHALL CORPORATIONS RULE? This arralgnment was directed against the invasion of Kansas.by sla lding hordes of ruffians, and the attempt to convert Kan- sas and Nebraska Into slave territorizs, was just forty years ago, when they were carved out as territories, and with the creation of Nebraska into a territory a struggie began and ended with universal fre:dom on Ameri- can soil. Shall it be said of Nebraska, shall it be said of you today, that the principles and objects for which the ploneers of this state had to fight, and for which the republi- can party was the champlon, shall be repudi- ated and discarded and th: government of this state surrendered to.the railroad cor- porations, which manipulate your conventions and foist upon the people candidates who are absolutely under their control? 1 do not believe that N:braska has become so recre- ant to the early lessons taught by her plo- neers. (Applause.) Now, the republican platform of 1868 was framed DLy the convention that nominated S. Grant. for president, and was “We denounc: all forms of repudia- tion as a national crime, and the national honor requires the payment of the public indebtedness in the uttermost good faith to all creditors at home and abroad, fot only according to the letter, but the &pitit of the laws und:r which it was contracted. “This convention declares itself i sympa- thy with all oppressed people wh8 are strug- gling for their rights. “That we recogniz: the great principles laid down in the immortal Declaration of In- dependenc: as the trae foundation of demo- cratic government, and we hail with gladness every effort toward making these principles a 1Il\\'|ng reality on every inch of American soil.” 5 1 desire you particularly to note this declaration relating to the credit of the na- tion, because, as we get along further, it . will be made evident to you that the gentle- man who has been placed upon the republi- can ticket as a candidate for governor fs committed entirely to a different palicy, judg- ing by his legislative record. The republican platform of 1876, in the centennial anniversary of American inde- pendince, declares: “When, in the economy of providence, this land was purged of human slavery, and when the strength of the gov- ernment of the people, by the people and for the people, was to be demonstrated, the republican party came into power. Its deeds to them with pride. Incited by their mem- ory to high alms for the good of our country and mankind, and looking to the future with unfaltering courage, hope and purpose, we, the representatives of the party in vafional convention assembled, make the following declaration of principles.” THE RIGHT OF SELF-GOVERNMENT. This was the preamble. This called attention to the fact that the republican party was organized for the purpose.of maintaining and perpetuating the right of the people to gov- ern themselves. Now, mark the following declaration in the same platform: “We re- jolce in the quickened conscience of the peo- ple concerning political affairs, and will hold all public officers to a rigid responsibility and engage (that means ‘pledge’) that the prosecution and punishment of all who be- tray official trusts, shall be swift, thorough and unsparing.” . Has this pledge been lived up to in Ne- braska? Point twelve months back only, it you please, and see whether or mot those who were entrusted by the republican party of Nebraska with the care and management of state Institutions have bean loyal to the solemn party’ pledges and falthtul to their trust, and whether justice has been meted out to those who have falled to do their duty and who have betrayed a trust. Let us also remember that Jf this pledge to prose- cute all who have betrayed the official trust applies to men who have held office in the pas, it must also apply to all men who aspire to be in office in Nebraska and who want to be placed by your suffrages in con- trol of the state government, The question heretofore among republicans has been: 'Are your candidates capable? Are they honest?’ Today it is simply **Are they willing to be faithful, pliant tools of the raflroad corporations, and particularly that railroad corporation which has assumed to control the affairs of the state and taken its destinies nto its own hands for the time being. (Applause.) SOMEWHAT PERSONAL. But before I enter upon further discussion of the relations of the citizens of Nebraska to those of corporate powers, of their in- fluence upon our conventions, of their inter- ference with your rights and my rights, and of their aitempt to subvert our govern- ment, I want to square myself with regard to the campdign that was fought some years 2go, In which one of your eminent citizens was o candidate for governor. It had been charged by this gentleman and by his fricnds, and this charge has been reiterated from time to time, that his defeat was due almost solely to foul play at my hands and at the bands of The Omaha Bee. He has carried a bandage upon his head ever since he met that defeat, and the scalp wounds that have been cut seem to have been kept wide open by his friends, as well as my enemies, who have poured brine into them in order to keep him soreheaded for ail time to come, by constantly agitating and constantly denouncing the method by which he was defeated. (Applause.) Now, let us seo what proof there Is of foul play or, treachery. I came here today to face him, and I sent him an invitation this afternoon, in courteous language, to be liere present, and if 1 shall say anything that is not true, I want him or his friends to rise here and contradict me. (Applause.) It has been asserted on behalf of Mr. Richards, (for 1 might as well name him), and by himselt and his editorial and politi- cal friends, that The Omaha Bee did not glve him the right support. Not only that, but that The Bee had opposed him openly and covertly, that it had falled to do its duty in that campaign with regard to himself, and that 1 had entered into a conspiracy'to bring about his defeat and the election of James E. Boyd. Now, what are the facts? Mr, Righards was nominated on the 24th of July, 1890 was a delegate to that convention. gation from Douglas county did not support Mr. Richards; it supported Dr. Mercer as its My vote was cast for Dr. Mercer, After Mr. Richards had been nominated, and when the motion was made to ination unanimous, a number of the delegate: from Douglas county protested and refused ake his nom- 1 addressed myself to those delegates implored them right there on the floor a spectacle join in and make the nomination unanimous. That fact cannct be truthfully gainsaid s to my personal action in that con- themselves, On the day following that conyention The Bee sald editorfally, and here 1 want to call package (exhibiting typewritten 15 cn behalf of Mr. Richards and the ticket that appeared in The Bee during that I cannot read them all, but will whether or read a portion of the after his nomination, on July 25, the follow- ing_editorial appeared Ticket—The mpaign of Nebraska this that will in the n of the party. party enters the year with a ticke mand the hearty support obstinate and shortsighted refusal of the res farmers to take an active ry electicns conventions to’ eliminate | interest in the prim rendered it free trom corporate influ and in every respect equal to the de- mands of the h e from top to bot- have done better in its choice of some of the have done very Richards, the nominee for gov- erncr, is a man of high standing and first- His colleagued on the ticket are all known to possess the requisite qualifications for the performance of the du- will devolve up:n 1t now remains for the party to make a careful survey of the field, pare for a struggle that energies of its leaders, and require rt of the rank and file to lead it to vie- in November." WAS RICHARDS A On the diy following the convention the Omaha Republican, which at had espoused the cause of ards was a prohib:tion- cutive ability. PROHIBITIONIST? republican state tion, charged that On the very next day, without or conferring wi rgo would prejudice him in the republicans, the following was eyes of many written by myself: “Not a Prolibitionist—The as by the Omaha Republican that Richards assures the adoption of the prohibiti:n amendment is an unwar- ranted conelusion Richards in a false light before the people It creites the {mpression that he is a prohibitionist and will use all his in- fluence to promote the adopticn of the pro- hibition amendment, ertion made the nomina- tion of L. D. of this state. Richards 1s a tem- never committed If 1 had been scheming to defeat Mr. Rich- ards I certainly would not have written this article, without even waiting for him to re- It was made in his in- friend of his must see that it was made for the benefit of the candidate and not to his detriment. comes an article of August 12: Duty of Republicans—The republican Nebraska has not been Gpened, but the opponents of the party are aiready busy with detr 10 alienate these who have always faithfully followed the standard of republicanism. “The only danger to the republican party in Nebraska Is from the defection of repub- lican farmers, w press their dissatisfaction by either voting with the democrats or assisting that party by giving support to the so-called indep duty of every repub- lican in the present exigency is to stand by Whatever .reforms he may believe necessary there will be better chance of se- curing from the republican party than from This is merely an extract; mewhat lengthy. 1es one of September 20: “Opening And right here let me quest such a denial terest, and any induced to ex- any other.” article is s of the Campaign.” csll your attention to some facts, Richards had been the latter part of July, Faign was not opened until the my suggestion early convention, in order organization 0th of Sep- have passed into history and we look back | nt it from making the nd file of the party which it was liablo ad the field all t inroads into the to _make if they Richards saw to Vermont to introduce hir i the next 1f 1o his friends and governor of Nebraska the same as Candi- date Majors has been doing. A BIT OF POLITICAL HISTORY. And what was the result? not return until early in, September, and .we had to wait with the campaign until the 20th of September before thus losing him the opportunity for fore- that was done Richards did stalling some when he was away in the east. *‘Opening of the Campaign—The republican in Nebraska will opened today, and thereafter until the day of election in November will be carried on with earnestness and vigor.” of the work republicans tormel opening. Richards came which the formal opening took place al the followed in a speech appealing to republicans for support of the ticket, But before those speeches were made a pri- meeting was Richards was present, and 8o were John was asked, will Douglas county give against thought that it would not exceed 3,000, and I told them that it would exceed 6,000. They ridiculed my stat and said that I told them that I unty pretty nearly as well them against ‘Was there anything in that that showed treachery or {ll-will? Richards would have met with such a Waterloo in Douglas county as he did on November 4. After the speeches had be:n made at Ex- a big landslid Richards proposed to go down to and seo the boys and treat them to beer. advised Mr. Richards not to go, stating, as be was not & man who made a practice of visiting saloons, it would do him no good; that saloon keepers had no respect for men who came only about election time, asking But he did not take vice, and so I followed along I am not a patron of saloons, but, of course, not a prohibitionst. for probably there are thousands of people in sume more liquor in a week than I have in all my life. (Laughter.) their support We went down there men called up to the bar. pourcd out the beer, every man took up his beer mug, and one of the gentlemen called to the next governor of The barkeeper der, who didn’t seem to know what this was all about, eried out: Why, Jim Boyd is going to be the next gov- ernor of Nebraska.” the beginning of the campalgn—the opening. (Laughter.) Following the opening hefe comes an editorial, September 23, three (Laughter.) of the campaign Party—No leader of the so-called independent party and no democrat has yet given a single republican farmer, not stay by There is no rea- of Nebraska should in the present campaign son that s worthy & moment’s consideration of any Intelligent man who can understand the utter fallacy and futility of the inde pendent movement, and who knows the his tory and the alms of the democratic party. And then follows & lohg editorial on that score. “‘Push the Canvass.” | This editorial wound up es follows: "It 1s nccessary to say plainly that the republican party of Nebraska cannot hope to win unléss the canvass is pushed more vigorously and earnestly than it has been thus far. The éxigency calls for an honest view of the situation and frank counsel, and The Bee decms it its duty to spur campaign managers and candidates on to greater activit Then comes another that reads: “Mr. Richards’ Campalgn.” ow, Just listin to this one and see whether The Bee gave him fair support “‘Mr. Richards carries on his canvass for the governorship with a modesty and dignity characteristic of the am Reports from the various parts of he ktate which he has visited show that hd has evirywhere won popular respect and impressed the people as a man who could be drusted to administer the ‘affairs of the state honestly, wicely, and in accordance with the platforin promises of his fri-nds. His Speeches are plain, stralghtforward statemenis of the record and principles of the republcan party in relation 10 their issues in the présent campaign. They are admirably adapted to the sity And finally ‘concludes as follows: Richards represents in his 1if> and cb the best citizenship of N¢braska. His cam- paign is a good index jof the sound and honorable administratiarf which might be expected of him as governor. That peared in The Omaha Bee on October 16, 1890, Here is another: ‘‘An Dvation to Richards— Last night a grand ovation to Hon. L. D. Richards s the answer of the republicans of Douglas county to those who have said they would prove lukewarm in their support of “the gubernatorial candidate. Douglas county republicans have mot thrown down their guns and run away.” That was Octo- ber 21, Here Is another: “Stand by the Ticket—The republican ticket, nominat-d by a thorcughly representative convention of the party, is entitled to the steadfast sup- port of every republican in Nebras Every consideration of party loyaity and duty d:mands of republicans! that they shall en dorse at the ballot box the action of their convention.” Then thik closes with an ap- peal for them to stand by the entire ticket: . ext Governor.!” There is another Nebraska has never had a demo- cratic governor, and, ih spite of the loud claims of Mr. Boyd's friends, there is no reason why one should be chosen this year. There never was a time when the repu lican party had better reason for desiring a republican In the exccutive chair, nor a time when the party had an abler or purer man for its candidate. No one who has been a republican should vote against D. Rich- ards, directly or indirectly ow, does that show any hostility to Mr. Richards? I should think “not. The article winds up as follows: “The republican candidate - is equally deserving of loyal support on personal grounds. He is a type of the strong, car- nest, successtul men Who are developed from honest material by western life. He has made his way from the bottom of the ladder to distinction without the aid of fortuitous circumstances. He has been true to every trust imposed in him, public and privat There is nothing In his career to call for an apology, from the time he went to war as a boy of 14 to the time when he became the candidate of the republican party for the highest office in the gift of his state These considerations should make the elec- tion of Hon. L. D. Richards certain in a state that hae a natural republican majori ot nearly 80,000."" Does that show that The Bee did not give Mr. Richards a cordial and warm support? WHAT MORE COULD HAVE BEEN DON Now, the last, on November 8, the day before the election: “Stand by the Colors’— Every republican in Nebraska should stand by his party ticket. In that course alone lies his safety. An enemy that for twenty- five years has sought valnly to win in a falr fight secks now to win by fostering dis- cord and distrust in ranks where harmony is fatal to their designs.’ And o on. I think 1 have read sufficient from the columns of The Bee to satisfy any rational person that nothing was left undone by the paper during the campaign to hold the re- publican vote for Mr. Richards. Individu- ally, I was very much occupied. I had un- dertaken to manage the anti-prohibiiion cam- paign, and for that reason could not give my personal attention to the editing of the paper from day to day, but only gave it an occasional supervision. 1 had hired Mr. Smythe, who had been the editor of a re- publican paper at Kearney, and paid him $200 a month during that campaign to con- duct tho political columns of the paper; and Mr. ythe was a personal friend and a arm {riend of Mr. Richards, so that Mr Richards could have commanded him at any time, Now, what happened during the campalgn? Mr. Richards did not see fit to pay but the smallest attention to the vote in Douglas county. Ten days béfore the campaign closed I mel him at Holdrege in the Re- publican valley, where (1 was engaged in campaigning against prohibition. 1 asked Mr. Richards what he was doing there and why he was not in Omaha. and he said he was looking up his “fences” in the Repub- lican valley, but would get to Omaha pretty soon. I then told him that 1 would be back within a very few days, and would then personally make a canvass and introduce him to many business men with whom I was acquainted, and try to make them feel that he was safe and sound on the question in which they were very deeply interested, but Mr, Richards never called. RICHARDS HAD AN OPPORTUNITY. On the Saturday night before the eloc- tion telegrams were recelved by The Bee from several counties stating that the republicans in interior districts would vote for prohibition if Douglas county and Omaha particularly, did not support Mr. Richards. _ These = telegrams were sup- pressed. The next morning I sent for Mr, Richards and also for Senator Manderson I met them in my office Sunday morn- ing and told them that these threats would only Irritate and arouse our people against Richards, and therefore should not be made. I said to Mr. Richards, then and there, “I have made a thorough Investigation of the condition of the state with regard to prohibition. I have responses from 12,000 farm subscribers as to their proposed ac- tion upon the prohibition question, and 8,000 of the 12,000 are against it" I as sured him that the amendment would be defeated by over 20,000, and advised him, in vlew of the feeling in Omaha, to have him- self interviewed by Mr. Smythe and state flat-footed that if prohibition was defeated in the state he would not sanction an act of the legislature that would make pro- hibition statutory. If & was carried, then he would have to do his duty as governor to enforce the constitution and the laws. Mr. Richards went from me to the room occupied by Mr. Smythe, and I saw noth- ing further of him; buf, the next morn- ing, when I picked up The Bee and read the expected interview, I chagrined to find a wishy-washy arlicle that was neither flesh, fish nor fowl, and amounted to noth- ing on the Issue, and therefore had no effect upon_the voters of our county. (Ap- plause) Now, I submit to you, gentle- men, whether, Wwith the showing, there is any good reason why this man and his friends should constantly continue to malign me as an enemy of the republican party, as a private enemy of Mr. Richards, as a traitor to him, and a treacherous con- spiralor who sought to eell him out? There 18 no truth whatever in it, and I defy him to bring the proof. Now, there is anotheér {hing that I want to call your attention to. If Richards had taken the trouble, and he had gpportunity enough,he would have known eryugh to know where to look for the cause of Miy defeat. It is motori- ous that in the convention that nominated him there was a cotest between the Elk- horn Valley railroad and tbe Burlington as to which should captare and cwn the gov- ernor. -~ The Elkhorn road was victorlous. The Burlington then furned in for James E. Boyd, Czar Holdrege warked for him where- ever he could through the republican railroad- ers, or railrcad republiegns, in that way di feating Mr. Richards. (Applause) And here is the proof that starés in the face. It shows that in every county, from Dougl county to_the Coloralo fine, Mr. Richar: was cut, find fell bebnd the average. Here we have, for instanc ms oounty: Rich- ards, 1,331} Allen, whe was about medium on the republican tickst, f r secretary of state had 1453, Buffalo county, Richards, 1,2 Allen, 1,401; Cass, 1,864 for Richards; 1,901 or Allen; Clay, 1,197 for Richards; 1,365 for Allen. And so on clear down the list, and the total amounts t» 1,646 votes. These 1,646 votes represent the republicans that are pli- ant In the hands of the Burlington road, and will vote the democratic tickot one year and the republican ticket the next year, and the populist ticket the next year, if fhere Is a populist that suits the B. & M. managers o railroad republicans voted against ards. Had they voted for him he would have been elected by over 2,000 plurality over Boyd, That fs the true inwardness of his defeat, and I hope from now on that the ledger is closed, and that no more will be heard about Rosewater's conspiracy and his treachery and the base defection in the campalgn of 1890, (Applause.) HAD A LETTER FROM RICHARDS We now come to the question of the mis- rule of the state by the raflroads. I will not undertake to formulate the conditi'ns under which this is done, but leave it for a good straight republican, who has supported re- publican principles and republican candidates during a lifetime, and who was honcred by the people of lowa with the position cf gov. ernor—I refor to Governor Larrabe volume published last year known as Railroad Question,” Governor Larrabes pre- sents the issue of the railroads in plities, and T will read you a little from that book. (A letter was handed to Mr. Rosewater at this moment.) This is a letter from Mr. Richards, but I am not able to read it, because it is a little bit difficult. It will be published, however. I had invited Mr. Richards to be present but I presume “something” has prevented his attendance. (Laughter and applause. Crics of *‘Read jt—read it") You want me to read the letter? (Volees “Read #.”) O, yes, if you are anxious to have me read it, T am not afraid to read any- (Laughter.) September 15, 1894, Hon. E. Rosewater Sir—Your invitation to be present at Love opera house at 8 o'clock to listen to your political address, when you propose to dis- cuss the living lssues of the day and the relations of The Omaha Bee to my candidacy in 1890 was received by me at 7 o'clock this evening. It is not probable that you will gay anything new, and 1 have no time disposition to punish myself by listening ‘o a rehash of your stale chestuuf. (Laughter.) Had you advised me in good time that you desired by prescnee to discuss with you the position of The Omaha Bee and its relations to republican candidates and the republican party during the past fifteen years, and agreed to divide time, it would he l infinite pleasure to meet you before my townspeople, when I might be able to em. phasize your treachery. 1 have seen nothing in your conduct or that of The Bee since my letter to you of December, 1890, to which you are respectfully referred, to ch opinion of you as an alleged rcpublican spectfully, L. D. RICHARDS.” (Laughter.) Well, 1 want to say right here that T am willing at any time to accommodate that gen- tleman to a debate. I am willing to discuss with him In the presenc: of the people of your city on the policy of The Omaha Bee and my corduct toward any republican that I have opposed or the paper has seen fit to oppose within those fifteen years, and, if he can show me that I have not had very good reasons, commendable, moral reasons, and high moral grounds for taking the position that 1 did, I will agree to apologize to him. I will even apologize to Richards for saying 0 much for him. (Laughter and applause.) I cannot go any further into this matter. I now propose to discuss the relations of the raflroads to the people, and if the gentle- men wants to ask me any questions when I get through, I will be very much pleased to answer them. (Reading) “Railroads in Politics, The question might be asked, How is it possible that in a republic where the people are the source of all power, and where ail officers are directly or indir:ctly selected by the people. to carry out their wishes and to administer the government in their inter:sts, a coterie of men bent on pecuniary gain would not be permitted to subvert those principles of common law and public economy which from time immemorial have beem the recognized anchors of the liberty of t nglo-Saxon race? “The statement that under a free govern- ment it Is possible for a few to suppress the many might almost sound absurd to a monarchist, and yet it is true that for the past twenty-five years the public affairs of this country have been unduly controlled by a few hundred railroad managers. “To perpetuate without molestation their unjust practices and prevent any approach to. an assertion of the principle of state control of railroad transportation railroad managers have sec 1, wherever possible, the co-operation of public ofilcials and, in fact, of every semi-public and private ageney capable of affecting public opin‘on. Thelr great wealth and power have made it pessible for them to influence to a greater or less extent every department cf the tional and st:ite governments FIGHT FOR THE NEW CONSTITUTION. The railroad fssue has bein with us for a good many years, and bo:dleism has al- ways been with us. As far back as 1871, when the people of this state sought to form. ulate a new constitution, through a conven- tion composed of our sblest jurists and most prominent citizens, this struggle between the people and the corporate power already had commenced. That constitutional convention framed an excellent organic law. It was modern in every respect. It provided for railrosd restricticn and regulation, and it provided safeguards for our banks as re- gards the liability of their stockholders, in the interests of the depositors and in the in- terests of Investors, The railroad man- agers and the bankers were displeased with that constitution, but they could not and did not dare to openly oppose it before the pe ple. There had been submitted with the new constitution four separate amendments. One of these was for church taxation. That amendment gave tuem the keynote. Imme- diztely the cry was raised that the constitu- tion proposed something unheard of. Placards wera (n every town and village, headed: “To your tents, Oh, Israel; will you submit to the taxation of the cemeteries and churches? On the one side the Catholic bishop, O'Gor- man, who preacled a crusade against the new constitution, and on the other side Rey Mr. Delamatre, a Methedist minister, took the stump against the new constitution For the first time In the history of the United States, probably, the Catholics and tho Protestants joined liands to oppose the adoption <f a constitution which was framed for equal taxation and corpcrate control What was the result? The crusade was carried on all over the state. Railroad passes were furnished to ell of the preachers and the priests and hired speakers, and the necessary funds were contributed by the bankers. The constitution which the people had sought to frame for their own protection was declared defeated. It never was defeated. With the audacity that corporate managers are capable of cer- taln officials were subsidized and corrupted to tamper with the returns, and the consti- tution which actually had carried was counted out, The late General Strickland, president of that constitutional convention, who was one of the officers charged with declaring the re- sult, was implored not to make it public that the constitution was being counted out, and a pledge was glven then and there that it he would declare it defeated by a few hundred majority, the legislature following was to be allowed to resubmit the constitu- tion, omltting the offensive parts. This fact has never before been made public. The Omaha Bee was the only daily paper north of the Platte that advocated the adop- tion of that constitution. All of the other papers had been bought off by the corporate conspirators, When the election was over, a silver plate service, valued at §1,200, was presented to Rev. Mr. Delamatre as a testi- montal of appreciation of his services. When the legislature passed a bill to resubmit that constitution, ‘the governor who had given us the pledges for its resubmlission, and who was one of the parties to this glgantic fraud, vetoed the bill. The influences of the rall- roads and the bankers were so great that it it could not muster votes enough to pass over the veto, That Is a matter of history. About that time the granger agitation began all over the west. Everywhere laws were belng passed restricting the powers of a public HA DAILY BEE carrier, and wh tion met In 1§ sentiment 1o im itself. It req mandate of the Instrument they we to cbey. For seventeen long years th of the constitution relating to railroad reg: icn remained an absolute dead letter fought over th only to be broken, until a disheartened and disguste germ of the populist par 10,000 members today, se:reely 15,000 at interference, for the crix that were constantly ¢ road lobby at every session of the legisla ture and at every they were managing the republica because it was the p braska, just as they m paity in Georgla, b in power. PEOPLE ROSE IN REVOLT. par in power In Ne Well, 1t would be a long story to recite all the railroad raids upon conventions and leg fslatures within the past twenty you will remember that in 188 ing republicans held in the city of Lincoln protesting agi/nst the course being pursued and endeavoring, if possible, party to a realization of its dang at that time the populist party w to be organized. Remember that in 1589 Mr Morrill, the republican candidate for uni versity regent, received received only 08,878, or a falling off of 24, 43) votes in one year, Now, what does that iify? It signifies that there was a deep- seated discontent all along the line In th of voters, principally farme ican party, that and many al and bray of them old sold ers, Just as 1 as any of the veterans of the union armies, had detached themselves from the party that they wanted and wanted to transmit children the titutions which the founders of the public had had saved the union Dbecause to the stat to their children and children’s free republic and the saviors of the re 1 saved for them. (Applaus 1800 these resolutions were adopted Ived, That we reiterat ns from 18 republican conven 188, and we believe the republiean part poble of dealing with every vital fssu 1hat concerns the welfare of the Amer pecple whenever the rank and file of th party are untrammeled in the exercise of their politial rights Resolved, That we view with alarm the the republicans of the state, chiefly due to, the pernicious & interference of corpara- attempts to control all de- ntense discontent among and demorali nd their ments of our stite governme . executive, judicial—and we Dublicans who ¢ rve our stitutions to rally 1e of our s from corpora domin by actively participating in the prima yns and nominating conventio: Cived, t—leg that they ehall interference with our conventions and leg lature: Resolved, That rallroad passes d in this state for political purpos species of bribery pe fluenc and tending to undermis on of the will of the people in th legislatures and juries the prohibition of b » penaltie: Resolved, That Nebraska has for yea been subject to exorbitant transportatic rates, discriminating agalnst her produet thus ‘retarding her’ development, and we portiation condemn the State Board of Tran for falling to exercise the authority ves in them, and by refusing o afford to people the relief they were pledged to giv We therefore demand that the legislature et maximum tariff bill covering fon of our products and prin: shall e the transport cipal imports. After the conference, lutions had been promule tee, of which Mr. Richa teous he convention held early nearly similar to this declaration, and, m over, they refused to renominate John land commissioner, and Mr. tary of state, and ca dumping out though these & one term, and were, un een, owdrey, secr E endeavored at that tim2 to rebuk Th form nothing came of it. BUILDING OF A CELL HOUSE. Let me now revert to the work of the legislature of 1893, Before that legislature had met, during the summer of 1592, prom- inent citlzens of Lincoln made charges in state s and state institutions, charging that ance and corruption In state institutions, that the state was boing robbed, thousands and nds of dollars were being squan- being delivered to private citizens and charged up to the state, that materfals that were inferior were being accepted and paid for as first- class goods, and {hat a wholesale system of plunder and spoilation wes going on in state institutions. These reports were at but when the legislature charges were investigated and found to be substantially true. It t: Board of consisting of retary of state and the land commissioner, had gone into a conspiracy with the contractor of the penitentiary, the notorious Charley Mosher, o a_ contract with r to construct a cell house for $10,+ 000, for which the previous legislature had the public prints against variou office there ad been a general extrava thous dered, that coal w first discredit, sonvened th q also transpired that the Public Lands and Buildings the attorney general, the s and that they had m. M made an appropriatic those state officers as it is known to /me. Why was It, then, that these state officers Simply because in their collusion with this man Mosher, who is @& boodler extraordinary (laughter) and a manipulator of legislatures and conventions, there was provided liberal lubricating material for the state house undertook to build that cell house? ring. (Laughter.) This cell house was to be constructed by Mosher, and the State Board of Public Lands and Bulldings appointed his own manager, Bill Dorgan, as superintendent of construction Mere was @ contractor who also was left to furnish suc mal without furnishing proof of what had a tuglly been dome er expended. There were $40.000 squandered on that cell hous:; It was a gigantic steal. The building cannot be used for anything except storage, The board drew $500 of that money and expended it on 4 junket down east under the pretense that cting other penitentlaries and a number of institutions. The most re- markable thing about It was that the vouchers showed that the exact amount pald they were insp GLE COPY FI1V n that constitutional conven , they were forced by public rt & stringent provision in regard to maximum rates, with regard to discrimination and po-ling.” But that instru- ment, the constitution, does not enforce of ired legislation, and it required faithful cfficers who would carry out the sworn part e questions time and again; convention after convention was held platforms were adcpted, pledges were made great mass of re- publicans in this state became thoroughly Fet it was the fhe popul st party of Nebraska wouid not have contained ny event, had It not been for the perniclous al conspiracies rried on by the rail- republican convention, for nage the dem-cratic cause that Is the party ears, but just prior o the nomination of Mr. Richards for gov- erncr, there had been a conference of lead- to bring the Just about 317 votes In (his state, and the very next year Mr. Richards large number and cordially fundamental principles of the an_ party as enunciated by successive arnestly sire to to the , That while we desire to accord to rallroad corporations their rights and privileges as ecommon carriers, we demand out of politics and stop tributed & are a niclous In their in- e public cubyersive to a free and unbought and wrtation in any form under v which these reso- , a committee waited upon the republican state commit- rds was at that time the chairman. We receivid a very cour- ring, and the party ordered its at our suggestion, in order to forestall the threatened defection of republicans into the populist ranks. The convention of 1890 adopted a platform very within an ' ace of n Benton for auditor, al- ate officers had only had er custom, entitl d to a renomination. They were dumped overboard because the republican party rted o respond to public sentiment, and the fallure of the Board of Railroad Commis- sioners to carry out the mandate of the law. During that same summer Governor yer issued a proclamation calling the legislature together in extra scssion. and providing that they should pass the maxi- mum rate law and abolish the State Board of Transportation. That showed which way the wind was blowing. It showed that the republican rank and file of the state de- manded somo action; but after all that was promised and pledged In our plat- ow, in the first place, the contracts with Willlam H. B. Stont, which Mosher had_assumed, provided that 280 cells should be built at the expense of the contractor, and the legislature itself was violating the contract, or rather giving away $40,000 to the contractor, In msking the appropria- tion. This fact was as well known to ed for the state as superintendent. There were no plans, no speclfications, and the contractor bullding material as suited him, charge what he pleased and out vouchers for work and material A m——s TWELVE PAGES A AR AR AP O i CENTS out on that trip was $500. They did not spend 15 cents less; nor 10 cents more. (Laughter.) BROUGHT ON IMPEACHMENT. Now, then, the legislature, finding th scandalous state of affairs, nassed resolutions impeaching these officers, The vote on the Impeachment resolutions was almost unani mous; only five members recorded their votes agalnst them. Two of these were, 1 believe, democrats; one of ther James E. North, the present collector of the state of Nebraska; and the other, If L remember right, was Senator Mattes of Nebraska City, who 18 traveling around In Rurope and distributing hoe cake to { mans at the instance of J. Sterling Morton. (Laughter.) Only five out of 133 members voted against these im- peachment resolutions, and yet it is said that those resolutions were passed as a plcce of political spite work. That seems preposterous to any rational man, for democrats, popus lists and republicans voted together. When this matter reached the supreme court a trial was had, and the court was divided. The majority of the court acquitted the impeached officers on the ground that their misconduct was a technical violation of the law only, although their method of doing siness was severcly censured. Chlef Jus tice Maxwell voted them guilty and filed a ssenting opinfon, sustaining the point he made, that they should have been dis- missed from the service. (Applause.) Now, under ordinary conditions, men who were acquitted under such pes culiar ~ clrcumstances, who were aes quitted on Scoteh verdiet, would have been glad to lie down and keep still and tend to thelr business and avold any further cinsure. Not s0 with these ime peached state officials and the boodle ring- sters at Lincoln. They were bound to have a vindication, and the only way to have their vindication was to depose Samuel Max- well from the supreme bench. In that they had no dificulty in finding active allies in the railroad corporations. It was a most dangerous and powerful combination. The state officers and their retainers, railroad mercenaries, working night and day, to defeat Samuel Maxw:ll, who was one of the or- ganizers of the republican party of this state, who had been on the bench for twenty odd years, and never had been charged with faltering in his duty, whatever else there might have been said against him. (Ap= plause.) Had Samuel Maxwell indicated or inti- mated that he was willing to do the bidding of one of those corporations, the one that is now dominating the state—I mean the B & M. railroad and the czar, Holdrege—he would have been on the beneh today. HOW MAXWELL WAS DEFEATED. How was his defeat brought about? By chicanery, coercion of railroad employes and boodl>, “In your own county a straw man was put up as a candidate to prevent him from securing a delegation, and the most dastardly means and shameless trickery were resorted to. Men who conspire to undermine good government are more dangerous than the burglar who breaks into your house, or the safe-blower who robs a bank. What is money or property as compared with the right of American citizens to impartial tria in our courts of justice and to the honest and fearless interpretation of our laws. In.Douglas county th: general sentiment of republicans was in favor of returning Judge Maxwell. If no interference had taken place he would have had that delega- tion solid and would have been renominated. How was the popular will thwart:d? One of our councilmen I a cornice maker. He was engaged to do some work by the Board of Public Lands and Bulldings on one of the state buildings, and thereupon he set to work to vindicate them. He managid to pack his ward delegation with railroad em= ployes, while he was assuring me personally that they were all right for Maxwell. Sim= ilar influences were used in other parts of the city, but with all this interference we had a majority of delegates for ‘Maxwell when the convention met. But we could not overcoms coercion and boodle. 1 had been assured that the Unlon Pacific railroad was not med- dling. Just before our convention met [ called upon the president of that road, Mr. Clark, and asked him whether it was true that the company was not taking part in this filght and would not interfere. He said that was the truth, that he did not propose to do anything against Judge Maxwell or interfere in that fight. Then said I: “Mr, Clark, will you be kind enough to write on a piecc of papsr that your employes are at liverty to vote as they please?"’ “No, T cannot do that,” gaid he. “Weil,” sald 1, “but why not?'" “Why,” he sald, “that would be a breach of faith with the other railroad people. (Applause.) W, then, just think of it, fellow cltl- zns. Here was the president of a great railroad, and a republican—such as republi= cans are, you know, on any railroad (laughs ter)—here was the president of a great road that would not write down on a plece of paper that his employes who were del:gates in & convention were at liberty to vote the sentiment of the men whom they repres:nted, Call you that free government? = Or cail you that a republican form of government? I say it is simply despotism, just as danger~ ous as any that has ever controlled Russia or Turk:y. What was the result? The result was just this—that these employes did not dare to vole the scntiment which they were elected to express at the convention, and they cast their voles, every one of them, against Judge Maxwell. The ring of boodlers at Lincoln was vindicated. It was vindj- cated by deposing Judge Maxwell, but it struck a blow at the republican party from which for years ‘it will not be abie to re- cover. Resenting the outrageous Intcrference with that convention, I refused the support of The Omaha Bee to the candidate nominated by that convention. I have been asked time and again, “'Why did you, who were the ni tional committeeman, “refuse to support the regularly nominated candidate of the party? First and foremost, 1 refused because fraud vitlates all things, and men who are o d in voting in a convention do not Tep- resent the” will of the party. (Applause.) In the next place, 1 refused because 1 could forsee that if this outrage was consums mated and endorsed by the republicans of the state, that In the year 154, when we want to carry the state, a yellow dog ticket would be put up, and that we would then be con- fronted with the one question, “Shall we save the state from the disgraco and danger of public pluderers in the state house, or shall the republican party boldly step in and administer a rebuke to railroadism and Loodlerism by rebuking it and force the nomination of clean, uprigl capable men in the year 1896, a ticket that will represent the will of the people and not the corpora- tion bosses?"" HAS NO PERSONAL GRIEVANCE. That was why I opposed the nomination of Judge Harrison. It was not a personal grievance; It was not a quarred that I had with him, but it was a desire to save the republican party from what they are now having to go through. (Applause). Just what I dreaded came to pass. Not that 1 dreaded it because of any personal grievanco against Colonel Mafors, Cer- tainly not. Colonel Majors has publicly de- clared in the republican state convention at Omaha that for Ofteen years 1 had been at swords' points with him, and had been pur- suing him malignantly and maliclously through every campalgn. There is just about as much truth in that assertion as there was in the forged census returns to which he swore at Washington. (Applause and laughter.) Mr. Majors and myself had no quarrel up to 1886, when we both opposed Church How when he worked with me hand in hand te defeat a candidate whom I considered an im= proper person for the republicans to nomie nate. I never asked Mr. McShane for any re- ward, political or otberwise, because 1 did that work conscienclously, as I belleved, in the Interest of the republican party and of clean government, HBut Majors had hip pe- ward. He had his brother properly n care of by Mr. McShane and kept in one of the land offices in the Republican valley through Cleveland's first administration and & little later om, Myselt and Mr. Majors had no quarrel up to 1880, and there is no truth whatever in his statement to the contrary, We traveled together in 1591 trom Omahp 9 Washlogton, in order to try to get the tional convention lccated at Omah was the first trip he had made to Wash ton siuce Thomas B, Reed submitted