USA > New York > History of the state of New York, political and governmental, Vol. VI > Part 39
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"The principle of equal pay for equal service should be applied throughout all branches of the Federal government in which women are employed.
"Federal aid for vocational training should take into considera- tion the special aptitudes and needs of women workers.
"We demand Federal legislation to limit the hours of employ-
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ment of women engaged in intensive industry the product of which enters into interstate commerce.
"Housing .- The housing shortage has not only compelled care- ful study of ways of stimulating building, but it has brought into relief the unsatisfactory character of the housing accommodations of large numbers of the inhabitants of our cities. A nation of home- owners is the best guarantee of the maintenance of those principles of liberty, law, and order upon which our government is founded. Both national and State governments should encourage in all proper ways the acquiring of homes by our citizens. The United States government should make available the valuable information on hous- ing and town planning collected during the war. This informa- tion should be kept up to date and made currently available.
"Hawaii .- For Hawaii we recommend Federal assistance in Americanizing and educating their greatly disproportionate foreign population ; home rule; and the rehabilitation of the Hawaiian race.
"Pointing to its history and relying on its fundamental principles, we declare that the Republican party has the genius, courage, and constructive ability to end executive usurpation and restore constitu- tional government; to fulfill our world obligations without sacrificing our national independence; to raise the national standards of educa- tion, health, and general welfare; to reestablish a peace-time adminis- tration and to substitute economy and efficiency for extravagance and chaos; to restore and maintain the national credit; to reform unequal and burdensome taxes ; to free business from arbitrary and unnecessary official control ; to suppress disloyalty without the denial of justice; to repel the arrogant challenge of any class and to maintain a govern- ment of all the people as contrasted with government for some of the people ; and finally, to allay unrest, suspicion, and strife, and to secure the cooperation and unity of all citizens in the solution of the complex problems of the day, to the end that our country, happy and prosper- ous, proud of its past, sure of itself and of its institutions, may look forward with confidence to the future."
As in previous Republican conventions a minority report on platform was presented by the member of
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the committee on resolutions from Wisconsin; rejected without a division.
Prohibition Party
Convention held in Lincoln, Nebraska, July 21-22, 1920.
William J. Bryan, of Nebraska, was unanimously nominated for President, but declined ; and the nomina- tion then went to Aaron S. Watkins, of Ohio.
For Vice-President, D. Leigh Colvin, of New York. Platform :
"The Prohibition party, assembled in national convention in the city of Lincoln, Nebraska, on this twenty-second day of July, 1920, expresses its thanks to Almighty God for the victory over the beverage liquor traffic which crowns fifty years of consecrated effort. The principles which we have advocated throughout our history have been so far recognized that the manufacture and traffic in intoxicating drink have been forever prohibited in the fundamental law of the land; Congress has rightly interpreted the Eighteenth amendment in laws enacted for its enforcement; and the Supreme Court has upheld both the amendment and the law.
"Asking that it be clothed with governmental power, the Prohibi- tion party challenges the attention of the nation and requests the votes of the people on this declaration of principles.
"Nullification Condemned .- The organized liquor traffic is en- gaged in a treasonable attempt to nullify the amendment by such modification of the enforcement act as will increase the alcoholic con- tent in beer and wine and thus thwart the will of the people as con- stitutionally expressed.
"In the face of this open threat the Republican and Democratic parties refused to make platform declarations in favor of law enforce- ment, though petitioned so to do by multitudes of people. Thus the
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Prohibition party remains the sole political champion of national prohibition.
"The Prohibition party in its platform in 1872 declared: 'There can be no greater peril to the nation than the existing party competi- tion for the liquor vote; any party not openly opposed to the traffic, experience shows, will engage in this competition, will court the favor of the criminal classes, will barter away the public morals, the purity of the ballot, and every object of good government for party success.' Notwithstanding the liquor traffic is now outlawed by the Constitu- tion, this fitly describes the present political attitude of the old parties.
"The issue is not only the enforcement but also the maintenance of the law to make the amendment effective.
"The proposed increase in the alcoholic content of beverages would be fraught with grave danger in that it would mean the return of the open saloon with all its attendant evils.
"The League of Nations .- The League of Nations is now in exis- tence and is functioning in world affairs. We favor the entrance of the United States into the League by the immediate ratification of the treaty of peace, not objecting to reasonable reservations interpreting American understanding of the covenant. The time is past when the United States can hold aloof from the affairs of the world. Such course is short-sighted and only invites disaster.
"Peace .- We stand for a constitutional amendment providing that treaties of peace shall be ratified by a majority of both houses of Congress.
"We stand by our declaration of 1916 against militarism and universal military training. Without it our boys were in a short time trained to whip the greatest army ever assembled, and with national prohibition to make sure the most virile manhood in the world we should encourage universal disarmament and devotion to the arts of peace.
"Education .- We stand for compulsory education with instruction in the English language, which, if given in private or parochial schools, must be equivalent to that afforded by the public schools, and be under State supervision.
"Suffrage .- The Prohibition party has long advocated the enfran-
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chisement of women. Suffrage should not be conditioned upon sex. We congratulate the women upon the freedom which the party has helped them to achieve.
"Women and the Home .- We approve and adopt the program of the National League of Women Voters for :
"The prohibition of child labor ;
"Adequate appropriation for the Children's bureau ;
"Protection for infant life through a Federal program for mater- nity and infant care ;
"A Federal Department of Education, Federal aid for the removal of illiteracy, and the increase of teachers' salaries ;
"Instruction of the youth and the newcomer to our shores in the duties and ideals of citizenship ;
"Vocational training in home economics ;
"Federal supervision of the marketing and distribution of food; the enactment and enforcement of such measures as will open the channels of trade, prevent excess profits, and eliminate unfair competi- tion and control of the necessities of life ;
"The establihment of a Woman's bureau in the Department of Labor to determine standards and policies which will improve work- ing conditions for women and increase their efficiency ;
"The appointment of women in the mediation and conciliation service and on any industrial commissions and tribunals which may be created ;
"The establishment of a joint Federal and State Employment service with women's departments under the direction of qualified women ;
"The merit system in the civil service free from discrimination on account of sex, with a wage scale determined by skill demanded for the work and in no wise below the cost of living as established by offi- cial investigation ;
"Appropriations to carry on a campaign against venereal diseases and for public education in sex hygiene ;
"Federal legislation permitting an American-born woman to retain her citizenship while resident in the United States, though married to an alien ;
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"And further, that an alien woman who marries an American citi- zen must take the obligation of citizenship before she can become a citizen.
"Economy in Administration .- We believe in the budget system and we stand for economy in governmental administration. There should be a reduction in boards, committees, commissions, and offices which consume taxes and increase expenses.
"Labor and Industry .- We stand for industrial peace. We believe the time has come for the government to assume responsibility for the protection of the public against the waste and terror of industrial warfare, and to that end we demand legislation defining the rights of labor and the creation of industrial courts which will guarantee to labor and employing capital equal and exact justice, and to the general public protection against the paralysis of industry due to this warfare.
"Profiteering .- The Prohibition party pledges the nation to rid it of the profiteer and to close the door against his return. It will endeavor to eliminate all unnecessary middlemen by the encourage- ment of organizations among producers that will bring those who sell and those who use nearer together. It will enact and enforce laws needful to effectively prevent excessive charges by such middlemen. To this end it will demand legislation subjecting to the penalties of the criminal law all corporate officers and employes who give or carry out instructions that result in extortion ; it will make it unlawful for anyone engaged in interstate commerce to make the sale of one article dependent upon the purchase of another article, and it will require such corporation to disclose to customers the difference between cost price and selling price or limit the profit that can be legally charged, as the rate of interest is now limited.
"Agriculture .- We pledge our aid to the farmers in working out a plan to equalize prices, to secure labor, and to organize a system of cooperative marketing, including public terminals, mills, and storage for the purpose of encouraging agriculture and securing for the farmer such return as will tend to increased production.
"We favor such extension of the parcel post as will further facili- tate the direct traffic between the producer and consumer.
"Presidential Qualifications .-- The qualifications for President
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stated in the Constitution have to do with age and citizenship. We call attention to the fact that of greater importance are those not so stated, referring to moral, intellectual, and spiritual endowments. The President of the United States in his daily life, his home and family relationships, and in his official career is expected to typify the finest and best the country can produce. He is the leader of the nation. The moral force and power of his example are immeasurable. No man or woman should ever be elected to the high office who is out of harmony with the purposes of the people or who lacks sympathy with their highest and holiest ideals and with the Christian principles upon which the nation was founded.
"Law and Order .- A crying evil of the day is the general lax enforcement of law. Without obedience to law and maintenance of order our American institutions must perish.
"The Prohibition party now, as ever, pledges impartial enforce- ment of all law.
"Conclusion .- In this national and world crisis the Prohibition party reminds the people of its long-time faithfulness and its wisdom, proved by the many reforms which it was the first to advocate; and on its record as the oldest minority party-one which has never sold its birthright for a mess of pottage but throughout the years has stood for the best interests of the country-it asks the favorable considera- tion of the voters, believing that by its support they can make it neces- sary for all political organizations to come up to a higher level and to render a finer quality of service.
"It pledges itself resolutely to stand for the right and oppose the wrong and dauntlessly to lead in the advocacy of righteous and patriotic principles. On its record and on this declaration of principles it submits its case to the American people."
Farmer-Labor Party
The so-called "Forty-Eighters," consisting of radi- cals from the forty-eight States, met in Chicago on July 11, 1920. Owing to dissensions the delegates split into several factions. The most numerous element organ-
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ized the new Farmer-Labor party, which on July 15 nominated Parley P. Christensen, of Utah, for Presi- dent, and Max S. Hayes, of Ohio, for Vice-President.
Platform :
"Preamble .- The American Declaration of Independence, adopted July 4, 1776, states that governments are instituted to secure to the people the rights of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness, and that governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.
"Democracy cannot exist unless all power is preserved to the people. The only excuse for the existence of government is to serve, not to rule, the people.
"In the United States of America the power of government, the priceless and inalienable heritage of the people, has been stolen from the people-has been seized by a few men who control the wealth of the nation and by the tools of these men, maintained by them in public office to do their bidding.
"The administrative offices of the government and Congress are controlled by the financial barons-even the courts have been prosti- tuted,-and the people as a result of this usurpation have been reduced to economic and industrial servitude.
"Under the prevailing order in the United States wealth is mon- opolized by a few and the people are kept in poverty, while costs of living mount until the burden of providing the necessaries of life is well-nigh intolerable.
"Having thus robbed the people first of their power and then of their wealth, the wielders of financial power, seeking new fields of exploitation, have committed the government of the United States, against the will of the people, to imperialistic policies and seek to ex- tend these enterprises to such lengths that our nation to-day stands in danger of becoming an empire instead of a republic.
"Just emerging from a war which we said we fought to extend democracy to the ends of the earth, we find ourselves helpless while the masters of our government, who are also the masters of industry and commerce, league themselves with the masters of other nations to prevent self-determination by helpless people and to exploit and rob
-
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them, notwithstanding that we committed ourselves to guaranty of self-government for all such peoples.
"Following the greedy spectacle of the Peace conference, the money-masters feared an awakening of the people which threatened to exact for mankind those benefits for which the war was said to have been fought. Thereupon these masters in the United States, through their puppets in public office, in an effort to stifle free discus- sion, stripped from the inhabitants of this land rights and liberties guaranteed under American doctrines on which this country was founded and guaranteed also by the Federal Constitution.
"These rights and liberties must be restored to the people.
"More than this must be done. All power to govern this nation must be restored to the people. This involves industrial freedom, for political democracy is only an empty phrase without industrial democ- racy. This cannot be done by superficial, palliative measures such as are from time to time thrown as sops to the voters by the Repub- lican and Democratic parties. Patchwork cannot repair the destruc- tion of democracy wrought by these two old parties. Reconstruction is necessary.
"The invisible government of the United States maintains the two old parties to confuse the voters with false issues. These parties, therefore, cannot seriously attempt reconstruction, which, to be effect- ive, must smash to atoms the money power of the proprietors of the two old parties.
"Into this breach step the amalgamated groups of forward-looking men and women who perform useful work with hand and brain, united in the Farmer-Labor party of the United States by a spon- taneous and irresistible impulse to do righteous battle for democracy against its despoilers, and more especially determined to function to- gether because of the exceptionally brazen defiance shown by the two old parties in the selection of their candidates and the writing of their platforms in this campaign. This party, financed by its rank and file and not by big business, sets about the task of fundamental reconstruc- tion of democracy in the United States, to restore all power to the people and to set up a governmental structure that will prevent seizure henceforth of that power by a few unscrupulous men.
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"The reconstruction proposed is set forth in the following platform of national issues, to which all candidates of the Farmer-Labor party are pledged :
"1. One Hundred Per Cent. Americanism .- Restoration of civil liberties and American doctrines and their preservation inviolate, in- cluding free speech, free press, free assemblage, right of asylum, equal opportunity, and trial by jury ; return of the Department of Justice to the functions for which it was created, to the end that laws may be enforced without favor and without discrimination; amnesty for all persons imprisoned because of their patriotic insistence upon their constitutional guarantees, industrial activities, or religious beliefs ; repeal of all so-called 'espionage,' 'sedition,' and 'criminal syndicalist' laws; protection of the right of all workers to strike, and stripping from the courts of powers unlawfully usurped by them and used to defeat the people and foster big business, especially the power to issue anti-labor injunctions and to declare unconstitutional laws passed by Congress.
"To Americanize the Federal courts we demand that Federal Judges be elected for terms not to exceed four years, subject to recall.
"As Americanism means democracy, suffrage should be universal. We demand immediate ratification of the Nineteenth amendment and full, unrestricted political rights for all citizens, regardless of sex, race, color, or creed, and for civil service employes.
"Democracy demands also that the people be equipped with the instruments of the initiative, referendum, and recall, with the special provision that war may not be declared, except in cases of actual mili- tary invasion, before referring the question to a direct vote of the people.
"2. Abolish Imperialism at Home and Abroad .- Withdrawal of the United States from further participation (under the treaty of Versailles) in the reduction of conquered peoples to econom- ic or political subjection to the small groups of men who manipu- late the bulk of the world's wealth; refusal to permit our govern- ment to aid in the exploitation of the weaker people of the earth by these men; refusal to permit use of the agencies of our government (through dollar diplomacy or other means) by the financial interests
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of our country to exploit other peoples, including emphatic refusal to go to war with Mexico at the behest of Wall Street; recognition of the elected government of the republic of Ireland and of the gov- ernment established by the Russian people; denial of assistance, financial, military, or otherwise, for foreign armies invading these countries, and an embargo on the shipment of arms and ammuni- tion to be used against the Russian or Irish people; instant lifting of the blockade against Russia; recognition of every government set up by people who wrest their sovereignity from oppressors, in accord- ance with the right of self-determination for all peoples; abolition of secret treaties and prompt publication of all diplomatic documents received by the State department; withdrawal from imperialistic enterprises upon which we already have embarked (including the dictatorship we exercise in varying degrees over the Philippines, Hawaii, Hayti, the Dominican Republic, Porto Rico, Cuba, Samoa, and Guam), and prevention of the imposition upon the people of the United States of any form whatever of conscription, military or industrial, or of military training.
"We stand committed to a league of free peoples, organized and pledged to destruction of autocracy, militarism, and economic impe- rialism throughout the world, and to bring about a world-wide dis- armament and open diplomacy, to the end that there shall be no more kings and no more wars.
"3. Democratic Control of Industry .- The right of labor to an increasing share in the responsibilities and management of industry ; application of this principle to be developed in accordance with the experience of actual operation.
"4. Public Ownership and Operation .- Immediate repeal of the Esch-Cummins law; public ownership with democratic operation of the railroads, mines, and natural resources, including stockyards, large abbatoirs, grain elevators, water-power, and cold storage and ter- minal warehouses; government ownership and democratic operation of such natural resources as are in whole or in part bases of con- trol by special interests of basic industries and monopolies, such as lands containing coal, iron, copper, oil, large water-power and com- mercial timber tracts, pipe-lines and oil-tanks, telegraph and tele-
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phone lines, and establishment of a public policy that no land (including natural resources) and no patents shall be held out of use for speculation or to aid monopoly; establishment of national and State-owned banks where the money of the government must, and that of individuals may, be deposited; granting of credit to individuals or groups according to regulations laid down by Congress which will safeguard deposits.
"We denounce the attempt to scuttle our great government-owned merchant marine, and favor bringing ocean-going commerce to our inland ports.
"5. Promotion of Agricultural Prosperity .- Legislation that will effectively check and reduce the growth and evils of farm tenancy ; establishment of public markets; extension of the Federal Farm Loan system, making personal credit readily available and cheap to farmers; maintenance of dependable transportation for farm prod- ucts; organization of a State and national service that will furnish adequate advice and guidance to applicants for farms and to farmers already on the land; legislation to promote and protect farmers' and consumers' cooperative organizations conducted for mutual benefit; comprehensive studies of costs of production of farm and staple man- ufactured products and uncensored publication of facts found in such studies.
"6. Government Finance .- We demand that economy in gov- ernmental expenditures shall replace the extravagance that has run riot under the present administration. The governmental expendi- tures of the present year of peace, as already disclosed, exceed $6,000,000,000-or six times the annual expenditures of the pre-war period. We condemn and denounce the system that has created one war millionaire for every three American soldiers killed in the war in France, and we demand that this war-acquired wealth shall be taxed in such a manner as to prevent the shifting of the burden of taxation to the shoulders of the poor in the shape of higher prices and of increased living costs.
"We are opposed, therefore, to consumption taxes and to all indirect taxation for support of current operations of the govern- ment. For support of such current operations we favor steeply
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graduated income taxes, exempting individual incomes amounting to less than $3,000 a year, with a further exemption allowance of $300 for every child under eighteen and also for every child over eighteen who may be pursuing an education to fit himself for life. In the case of State governments and of local governments we favor taxation of land value, but not of improvements or of equipment, and also sharply graduated taxes on inheritance.
"7. Reduce the Cost of Living .- Stabilization of currency so that it may not fluctuate as at present, carrying the standard of liv- ing of all the people down with it when it depreciates; Federal con- trol of the meat-packing industry; extension and perfection of the parcel post system to bring producer and consumer closer together ; enforcing existing laws against profiteers, especially the big and powerful ones.
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