Show MR NR BRYAN AND RAILROADS The political campaign is getting warmer in the east cast Mr i. Taft has taken the stump Mr l Bryan all already already al al- al- al l ready eady on the stump is getting bold in hurling denance de- de flance nance ance at his opponents and yet et that very defiance to us is an n indication that he is doubtful about three or four most important states His speech in New York wa was not Dot calculated to make him friends He went so far as ast asto to deny that he was o er ever in favor I of government ownership of railroads and must l have known n while talking that the files cont containing ining his speeches could not help but be drawn on him liim When he came caine back from around the world two years ago in a speech in New York he said f fI I do not know whether a 1 majority of the members of the party to which I belong believe in the tho government ownership of railroads but my theory is that no man can call caU a n mass meeting to decide what ho himself shall think I have havo reached the conclusion that there will bo be no permanent relief on the railroad question from di discrimination crimination between individuals indi and between places and from extortionate rates until the railroads are the property of the tho Ao government and ana operated by the government gov hO in tho interests of too the people I 0 And in a addition to that speech he said I favor the federal ownership of the trunk lines and the state tate ownership of all the rest of the railroads That really is worse than Populism or Socialism because it would result in confusion worse con con- founded Almost all the railroads are are interstate railroads and many of the most important of them belong to trunk lines Mr Bryans Bryan's thought to have ha havea haea a divided directory part of the federal government and part of the states could not fail to produce the utmost confusion to determine where the federal g government ownership left off and the state control began The speech is accounted for only on the ground that Mr Bryan had been watching the government ownership of railroads in Europe and in meditating over the situation had detern determined ned to improve upon both the methods in Europe and in America and what he proposed wOl would d have led to everlasting con con- fusion The wor worst t feature of it all was that his words tarried carried the idea that he was discussing in theory a question the practical effects of which he hel l knew new nothing Mr l Bryan is a gifted speaker he hec c can n make appeals to audiences which for the time being carry them away but that gift is not a sovereign sovereign eign one it is not one which excites mens men's confidence confidence I dence lence and Mr 1 Ir Bryan ought not to press his railroad railroad railroad rail rail- road views upon the country because they would be discounted in advance and be most liable to defeat defeat dei de- de i feat him |