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Show j CULLINGS FROM COLLIER'S. i What Is important? To newspapers, apparently, politics, in time of peace, and reflecting, sheep-like, this judgment judg-ment of the trade, wo give first place at present to the struggle of the parties part-ies to increaso their membership In congress. That this combat is tho most momentous doing now on earth, tho administration would agree, for every sinew is being bent to rout tho evil foe. Speaker Cannon, Secretary Taft, Cicero Bovorldge, and other men of gravity nnd stress, baring their simitars, betook them urgently I to . Maine and smote tho opposition lustily. Tho inhabitants of that slate of prohibition and Peruna listened to tho claps of earnestness and voted, far more than is their custom, for tho Democrats. They were told that Mr. Roosevelt was tho Issue. To their simple minds ho figured but feebly in the election of a governor, and not preeminently oven In judging of a congressman. All over the country wo hopo to see a corresponding Independence. In-dependence. Let state issues be considered con-sidered in state elections, and in selecting se-lecting congressmen may ho best man win. We have an excellent President, but in spite of his party ardor it can not bo made to appear that Republicans help and Democrats injure tho work that ho is doing. Tho Philippine Tariff- bill was- killed by the Republicans. Speaker Cannon had to bo frightened out of opposition to tho Pure Food bill. Tho American people aro not credulous enough to engulf tho assertion that tho Republican Republi-can party and tho President's performances per-formances aro bound together in any Siamese relation. Labor has tho right to fight in politics, pol-itics, to tho same extent as any other organized interest, neither more nor less. If it thinks certain congressmen congress-men hostile to its just demands, reason would prompt it to oppose their reelection. re-election. Any honest man, on the other hand, should defy labor as well as capital when his conscience so commands him. Mr. Littlefield's opinions opin-ions on labor measures are to some extent shared and to some extent opposed by us, but regardless of such differences of judgment wo rejoice In tho re-election of a bravo and uprlgnt man, precisely as wo should rejoice had ho been an equally bold', straight, and capable labor representative slated by capital for, destruction. Labor La-bor will continue its political activity, gaining power hero as it has in England, Eng-land, but inevitably, like any other party, it will often endeavor to ruin some of our high-minded office-holders because of honest differences of conviction. con-viction. & J Intensity of feeling is being maintained, main-tained, if not increased, as the trial of Moyer and Haywood draws more near. A hearing before tho Supremo Court of the United States on points of law is scheduled to begin at Wash-I Wash-I ington on October 9. During the sum- I w mor each faction has been assailing I tho other for preventing a speedy trial. Tho Socialists of Shoshone county, in their platform declared that tho principles for which Moyer and -Haywood stand aro diametrically opposed to murder, which is at least' interesting, although in somo conflict with other expressions of tho miners' union. Clarence Darrow, addressing his party at Spokane, made a long speech,' most of which, as reported In the papers, was In lino with this: "If j ho (tho laboring man, knew anything, any-thing, ho wouldn't bo working, and tho capitalist would bo depending on him."' Of coal ho said it should bo-"ft bo-"ft long not to Baer, but to "us," and added: "I am not particular whethor wo pay for it or not in getting it." Tho ronomlnatlon of tho governor of. Idaho, who has already decided that i Moyer and Haywood aro guilty, rop- . f i i resents one side of this violent controversy. con-troversy. Such expressions as tho Socialists So-cialists are putting out every week 1 represent tho other. It will be a triumph tri-umph for the jury system if tho trial can bo conducted as fairly as if socialism, so-cialism, unionism, and capitalism were abstract terms in-which no passion pas-sion burned. |