USA > New York > History of the state of New York, political and governmental, Vol. VI > Part 29
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"It is the function of the courts to interpret the laws which the people create, and if the laws appear to work economic, social, or political injustice it is our duty to change them. The only basis upon which the integrity of our courts can stand is that of unswerving jus- tice and protection of life, personal liberty, and property. If judicial processes may be abused, we should guard them against abuse.
"Experience has proved the necessity of a modification of the present law relating to injunctions, and we reiterate the pledge of our national platforms of 1896 and 1904 in favor of the measure which passed the United States Senate in 1896, but which a Republican Congress has ever since refused to enact, relating to contempts in Federal courts and providing for trial by jury in cases of indirect contempt.
"Questions of judicial practice have arisen especially in connection with industrial disputes. We deem that the parties to all judicial proceedings should be treated with rigid impartiality, and that injunc- tions should not be issued in any cases in which injunctions would not issue if no industrial dispute were involved.
"The expanding organization of industry makes it essential that there should be no abridgment of the right of wage-earners and pro-
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[1908
ducers to organize for the protection of wages and the improvement of labor conditions, to the end that such labor organizations and their members should not be regarded as illegal combinations in restraint of trade.
"We favor the eight-hour day on all government work.
"We pledge the Democratic party to the enactment of a law by Congress, as far as the Federal jurisdiction extends, for a general Employers' Liability act covering injury to body or loss of life of employes.
"We pledge the Democratic party to the enactment of a law creating a Department of Labor represented separately in the Presi- dent's cabinet, in which department shall be included the subject of mines and mining.
"Merchant Marine .- We believe in the upbuilding of the Ameri- can merchant marine without new or additional burdens upon the people and without bounties from the public treasury.
"The Navy .- The constitutional provision that a navy shall be provided and maintained means an adequate navy, and we believe that the interest of this country would be best served by having a navy sufficient to defend the coasts of this country and protect American citizens wherever their rights may be in jeopardy.
"Protection of American Citizens .- We pledge ourselves to insist upon the just and lawful protection of our citizens at home and abroad, and to use all proper methods to secure for them, whether native-born or naturalized, and without distinction of race or creed, the equal protection of the law and the enjoyment of all rights and privileges open to them under our treaties; and if, under existing treaties, the right of travel and sojourn is denied to American citizens, or recognition is withheld from American passports by any countries on the ground of race or creed, we favor prompt negotiations with the governments of such countries to secure the removal of these unjust discriminations.
"We demand that all over the world a duly authenticated passport issued by the government of the United States to an American citizen, shall be proof of the fact that he is an American citizen and shall entitle him to the treatment due him as such.
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"Civil Service .- The laws pertaining to the civil service should be honestly and rigidly enforced, to the end that merit and ability shall be the standard of appointment and promotion rather than services rendered to a political party.
"Pensions .- We favor a generous pension policy, both as a matter of justice to the surviving veterans and their dependents and because it tends to relieve the country of the necessity of maintaining a large standing army.
"Health Bureau .- We advocate the organization of all existing national public health agencies into a national Bureau of Public Health with such power over sanitary conditions connected with fac- tories, mines, tenements, child labor, and other such subjects as are properly within the jurisdiction of the Federal government and do ยท not interfere with the power of the States controlling public health agencies.
"Agricultural and Mechanical Education .- The Democratic party favors the extension of agricultural, mechanical, and industrial edu- cation. We therefore favor the establishment of district agricultural experiment stations and secondary agricultural and mechanical col- leges in the several States.
"Popular Election of Senators .- We favor the election of United States Senators by direct vote of the people, and regard this reform as the gateway to other national reforms.
"Oklahoma .- We welcome Oklahoma to the sisterhood of States and heartily congratulate her upon the auspicious beginning of a great career.
"Panama Canal .- We believe that the Panama canal will prove of great value to our country, and favor its speedy completion.
"Arizona and New Mexico .- The national Democratic party has for the last sixteen years labored for the admission of Arizona and New Mexico as separate States of the Federal Union, and recognizing that each possesses every qualification successfully to maintain separate State governments we favor the immediate admission of these Terri- tories as separate States.
"Grazing Lands .- The establishment of rules and regulations, if any such are necessary, in relation to free grazing upon the public
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lands outside of forest or other reservations, until the same shall eventually be disposed of, should be left to the people of the States respectively in which such lands may be situated.
"Waterways .- Water furnishes the cheaper means of transporta- tion, and the national government, having the control of navigable waters, should improve them to their fullest capacity. We earnestly favor the immediate adoption of a liberal and comprehensive plan for improving every water course in the Union which is justified by the needs of commerce; and to secure that end we favor, when practi- cable, the connection of the Great Lakes with the navigable rivers and with the Gulf through the Mississippi River, and the navigable rivers with each other, and the rivers, bays, and sounds of our coasts with each other by artificial canals, with a view to perfecting a system of inland waterways to be navigated by vessels of standard draught.
"We favor the coordination of the various services of the govern- ment connected with waterways in one service, for the purpose of aiding in the completion of such a system of inland waterways; and we favor the creation of a fund ample for continuous work, which shall be conducted under the direction of a commission of experts to be authorized by law.
"Post Roads .- We favor Federal aid to States and local authori- ties in the construction and maintenance of post roads.
"Telegraph and Telephone .- We pledge the Democratic party to the enactment of a law to regulate, under the jurisdiction of the Interstate Commerce commission, the rates and services of telegraph and telephone companies engaged in the transmission of messages between the States.
"Natural Resources .- We repeat the demand for internal develop- ment and for the conservation of our natural resources contained in previous platforms, the enforcement of which Mr. Roosevelt has vainly sought from a reluctant party ; and to that end we insist upon the preservation, protection, and replacement of needed forests, the preservation of the public domain for homeseekers, the protection of the national resources in timber, coal, iron, and oil against monopo- listic control, the development of our waterways for navigation and every other useful purpose, including the irrigation of arid lands, the
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reclamation of swamp lands, the clarification of streams, the develop- ment of water-power, and the preservation of electric power generated by this natural force, from the control of monopoly; and to such end we urge the exercise of all powers, national, State, and municipal, both separately and in cooperation.
"We insist upon a policy of administration of our forest reserves which shall relieve it of the abuses which have arisen thereunder, and which shall, as far as practicable, conform to the police regulations of the several States wherein the reserves are located, which shall enable homesteaders as of right to occupy and acquire title to all portions thereof which are especially adapted to agriculture, and which shall furnish a system of timber sale available as well to the private citizen as to the larger manufacturer and consumer.
"Hawaii .- We favor the application of the principles of the land laws of the United States to our newly acquired Territory, Hawaii, to the end that the public lands of that Territory may be held and utilized for the benefit of bona fide homesteaders.
"The Philippines .- We condemn the experiment in imperialism as an inexcusable blunder which has involved us in enormous expense, brought us weakness instead of strength, and laid our nation open to the charge of abandoning a fundamental doctrine of self-government. We favor an immediate declaration of the nation's purpose to recog- nize the independence of the Philippine Islands, as soon as a stable government can be established, such independence to be guaranteed by us as we guarantee the independence of Cuba, until the neutraliza- tion of the islands can be secured by treaty with other powers. In recognizing the independence of the Philippines our government should retain such land as may be necessary for coaling stations and naval bases.
"Alaska and Porto Rico .- We demand for the people of Alaska and Porto Rico the full enjoyment of the rights and privileges of a Territorial form of government, and that the officials appointed to administer the government of all our Territories and the District of Columbia should be thoroughly qualified by previous bona fide residence.
"Pan-American Relations .- The Democratic party recognizes the
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importance and advantage of developing closer ties of Pan-American friendship and commerce between the United States and her sister nations of Latin America, and favors the taking of such steps, con- sistent with Democratic policies, for better acquaintance, greater mutual confidence, and larger exchange of trade as will bring lasting benefit not only to the United States but to this group of American republics having constitutions, forms of government, ambitions, and interests akin to our own.
"Asiatic Immigration .- We favor full protection, by both national and State governments within their respective spheres, of all foreigners residing in the United States under treaty, but we are opposed to the admission of Asiatic immigrants who cannot be amalgamated with our population, or whose presence among us would raise a race issue and involve us in diplomatic controversies with Oriental powers.
"Foreign Patents .- We believe that where an American citizen holding a patent in a foreign country is compelled to manufacture under his patent within a certain time, similar restrictions should be applied in this country to the citizens or subjects of such a country.
"Conclusion .- The Democratic party stands for democracy; the Republican party has drawn to itself all that is aristocratic and pluto- cratic. The Democratic party is the champion of equal rights and opportunities to all; the Republican party is the party of privilege and private monopoly. The Democratic party listens to the voice of the whole people and gauges progress by the prosperity and develop- ment of the average man; the Republican party is subservient to the comparatively few who are the beneficiaries of governmental favoritism.
"We invite the cooperation of all, regardless of previous political affiliation or past differences, who desire to preserve a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, and who favor such an administration of the government as will insure, as far as human wis- dom can, that each citizen shall draw from society a reward commen- surate with his contribution to the welfare of society."
WILLIAM MCKINLEY
William Mckinley, 25th president; born at Niles, Ohio., January 29, 1843; lawyer; served in civil war; prosecuting at- torney, Stark County, Ohio, 1869-71; member of congress, 1877 to 1884, 1885-1891; governor of Ohio, 1892-1896; elected president, 1896; reelected 1900; assassinated while attending the Pan- American Exposition at Buffalo and died in that city on Sep- tember 14, 1901.
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Other Parties
Prohibition Party .- Convention held in Columbus, Ohio, July 15-16, 1908. For President, Eugene W. Chafin, of Illinois; for Vice-President, Aaron S. Wat- kins, of Ohio.
People's Party .- Convention held in St. Louis, April 2-3, 1908. For President, Thomas E. Watson, of Geor- gia; for Vice-President, Samuel W. Williams, of Indiana.
Independence Party .- Convention held in Chicago, July 28-29, 1908. For President, Thomas L. Hisgen, of Massachusetts; for Vice-President, John Temple Graves, of Georgia. This organization was developed from the Independence League; it represented the views of William R. Hearst in favor of public owner- ship of public utilities, etc.
Socialist Party .- Convention held in Chicago, May 10-17, 1908. For President, Eugene V. Debs, of In- diana; for Vice-President, Benjamin Hanford, of New York.
Socialist Labor Party .- Convention met in New York and on July 6 nominated for President Martin R. Preston, a prisoner in the Nevada State Prison, who was serving a twenty-five years' sentence for murder.1 He declined, and August Gillhaus, of New York, was substituted. For Vice-President, Donald Munro, of Virginia.
1New International Year Book, 1908, p. 586.
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The Election
Electoral vote for President and Vice-President :
William H. Taft and James S. Sherman, Republicans :- Cali- fornia, 10; Connecticut, 7; Delaware, 3; Idaho, 3; Illinois, 27; Indiana, 15; Iowa, 13; Kansas, 10; Maine, 6; Maryland, 2; Massa- chusetts, 16; Michigan, 14; Minnesota, 11; Missouri, 18; Montana, 3; New Hampshire, 4; New Jersey, 12; New York, 39; North Dakota, 4; Ohio, 23; Oregon, 4; Pennsylvania, 34; Rhode Island, 4; South Dakota, 4; Utah, 3; Vermont, 4; Washington, 5; West Vir- ginia, 7; Wisconsin, 13; Wyoming, 3. Total, 321. Elected.
William J. Bryan and John W. Kern, Democrats :- Alabama, 11; Arkansas, 9; Colorado, 5; Florida, 5; Georgia, 13; Kentucky, 13; Louisiana, 9; Maryland, 6; Mississippi, 10; Nebraska, 8; Nevada, 3; North Carolina, 12; Oklahoma, 7; South Carolina, 9; Tennessee, 12; Texas, 18; Virginia, 12. Total, 162.
Popular vote :
Taft, 7,679,006; Bryan, 6,409,106; Debs, 420,820; Chafin, 252,683 ; Hisgen, 83,562; Watson, 28,131; Gillhaus, 13,825.
1912 Republican Party
Convention held in Chicago, June 18-22. The great contest for the Presidential nomination between the supporters of President Taft and those of former Presi- dent Roosevelt was ushered in by a disputation con- cerning the national committee's temporary roll of dele- gates and refusal on the part of the Roosevelt men to accept the committee's nomination of Elihu Root as temporary chairman of the convention. Francis E. McGovern, of Wisconsin, was proposed for the tem- porary chairmanship by the opposition. The roll-call resulted: Root, 558; McGovern, 501; scattering and not voting, 19. It was not until the fifth and last day that the proceedings as to contested seats were con- cluded. These proceedings resulted in establishing the Taft forces in full control of the permanent organiza- tion, and Mr. Root was continued in the chairmanship. Thereupon Henry J. Allen, of Kansas, read a message from Mr. Roosevelt to his supporters in the conven- tion, in which the action taken regarding the contests was severely condemned and the following advice was given : "I hope the men elected as Roosevelt delegates will now decline to vote on any matter before the con- vention. I do not release any delegate from his honor-
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able obligation to vote for me if he votes at all, but under the actual conditions I hope he will not vote at all."
President Taft was renominated on the first ballot. The vote was as follows: Taft, 561; Roosevelt, 107; LaFollette, 41; Albert B. Cummins, of Iowa, 17; Charles E. Hughes, of New York, 2; present and not voting, 349; absent, 6.
Vice-President Sherman also was renominated, re- ceiving on the first ballot 595 votes to 58 for five others ; not voting but present, 352; absent, 72.
Platform :
"The Republican party, assembled by its representatives in national convention, declares its unchanging faith in government of the people, by the people, for the people. We renew our allegiance to the prin- ciples of the Republican party and our devotion to the cause of repub- lican institutions established by the fathers.
"It is appropriate that we should now recall with a sense of venera- tion and gratitude the name of our first great leader, who was nomi- nated in this city, and whose lofty principles and superb devotion to his country are an inspiration to the party he honored-Abraham Lincoln. In the present state of public affairs we should be inspired by his broad statesmanship and by his tolerant spirit toward men.
"The Republican party looks back upon its record with pride and satisfaction, and forward to its new responsibilities with hope and con- fidence. Its achievements in government constitute the most luminous pages in our history. Our greatest national advance has been made during the years of its ascendancy in public affairs. It has been genuinely and always a party of progress; it has never been either stationary or reactionary. It has gone from the fulfillment of one great pledge to the fulfillment of another in response to the public need and to the popular will.
"We believe in our self-controlled representative democracy, which
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is a government of laws, not of men, and in which order is the prerequisite of progress.
"The principles of constitutional government, which make provision for orderly and effective expression of the popular will for the protec- tion of civil liberty and the rights of men and for the interpretation of the law by an untrammelled and independent judiciary, have proved themselves capable of sustaining the structure of a government which, after more than a century of development, embraces one hundred mil- lions of people, scattered over a wide and diverse territory but bound by common purpose, common ideals, and common affection to the Con- stitution of the United States.
"Under the Constitution and the principles asserted and vitalized by it, the United States has grown to be one of the great civilized and civilizing powers of the earth. It offers a home and an opportu- nity to the ambitious and the industrious from other lands. Resting upon the broad basis of a people's confidence and a people's support, and managed by the people themselves, the government of the United States will meet the problems of the future as satisfactorily as it has solved those of the past.
"The Republican party is now, as always, a party of advanced and constructive statesmanship. It is prepared to go forward with the solution of those new questions which social, economic, and political development have brought into the forefront of the nation's interest. It will strive, not only in the nation but in the several States, to enact the necessary legislation to safeguard the public health; to limit effectively the labor of women and children, and to protect wage- earners engaged in dangerous occupations; to enact comprehensive and generous workmen's compensation laws in place of the present waste- ful and unjust system of employers' liability, and in all possible ways to satisfy the just demand of the people for the study and solution of the complex and constantly changing problems of social welfare.
"In dealing with these questions it is important that the rights of every individual to the freest possible development of his own powers and resources and to the control of his own justly acquired property, so far as those are compatible with the rights of others, shall not be interfered with or destroyed. The social and political structure of the
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United States rests upon the civil liberty of the individual ; and for the protection of that liberty the people have wisely, in the national and State Constitutions, put definite limitations upon themselves and upon their governmental officers and agencies. To enforce these limitations, to secure the orderly and coherent exercise of governmental powers, and to protect the rights of even the humblest and least favored indi- vidual are the function of independent courts of justice.
"The Republican party reaffirms its intention to uphold at all times the authority and integrity of the courts, both State and Federal, and it will ever insist that their powers to enforce their process and to protect life, liberty, and property shall be preserved inviolate. An orderly method is provided under our system of government by which the people may, when they choose, alter or amend the constitutional provisions which underlie that government. Until these constitutional provisions are so altered or amended, in orderly fashion, it is the duty of the courts to see to it that when challenged they are enforced.
"That the courts, both Federal and State, may bear the heavy burden laid upon them to the complete satisfaction of public opinion, we favor legislation to prevent long delays and the tedious and costly appeals which have so often amounted to a denial of justice in civil cases and to a failure to protect the public at large in criminal cases.
"Since the responsibility of the judiciary is so great, the standards of judicial action must be always and everywhere above suspicion and reproach. While we regard the recall of Judges as unnecessary and unwise, we favor such action as may be necessary to simplify the process by which any Judge who is found to be derelict in his duty may be removed from office.
"Together with peaceful and orderly development at home, the Republican party earnestly favors all measures for the establishment and protection of the peace of the world and for the development of closer relations between the various nations of the earth. It believes most earnestly in the peaceful settlement of international disputes and in the reference of all justiciable controversies between nations to an international court of justice.
"Monopoly and Privilege .- The Republican party is opposed to special privilege and to monopoly. It placed upon the statute-book
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the Interstate Commerce act of 1887 and the important amendments thereto, and the Anti-Trust act of 1890, and it has consistently and successfully enforced the provisions of these laws. It will take no backward step to permit the reestablishment in any degree of conditions which were intolerable.
"Experience makes it plain that the business of the country may be carried on without fear or without disturbance, and at the same time without resort to practices which are abhorrent to the common sense of justice. The Republican party favors the enactment of legislation supplementary to the existing Anti-Trust act which will define as criminal offenses those specific acts that uniformly mark attempts to restrain and to monopolize trade, to the end that those who honestly intend to obey the law may have a guide for their action and that those who aim to violate the law may the more surely be punished.
"The same certainty should be given to the law prohibiting combi- nations and monopolies that characterizes other provisions of commer- cial law, in order that no part of the field of business opportunity may be restricted by monopoly or combination, that business success honor- ably achieved may not be converted into crime, and that the right of every man to acquire commodities, and particularly the necessaries of life, in an open market, uninfluenced by the manipulation of trust or combination, may be preserved.
"Federal Trade Commission .- In the enforcement and administra- tion of Federal laws governing interstate commerce and enterprises impressed with a public use engaged therein, there is much that may be committed to a Federal Trade commission, thus placing in the hands of an administrative board many of the functions now neces- sarily exercised by the courts. This will promote promptness in the administration of the law and avoid delays and technicalities incident to court procedure.
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