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the party, we go before the country asking the support not only of those who have acted with us heretofore, but of all our fellow-citizens who, regardless of past political differences, unite in the desire to maintain the policies, perpetuate the blessings, and make secure the achievements of a greater America."

A minority report on platform was presented to the convention by Henry Allen Cooper, member of the committee on resolutions from Wisconsin. This embodied resolutions in favor of 1. Physical valuation of the railways as the basis for determination of just and reasonable railway rates; 2. Recognition of the principle that tariff duties should not be levied to such extent as to establish monopoly; 3. Maintenance, enforcement, and strengthening of the Sherman Anti-Trust law as applied to trusts and combinations to control production and prices, but exemption of labor organizations from the operation of that law; 4. Election of United States Senators by direct popular vote; 5. Publicity of campaign contributions and expenditures; 6. Interstate regulation of telegraph and telephone services and rates; 7. No ship subsidies, or other privileges to special interests at public expense; 8. Prohibition of the issuance of injunctions in cases arising out of labor disputes; 9. Enlargement of the President's cabinet by the appointment of a Secretary of Labor; 10. Extension of the Eight-hour law to all employes engaged on government work; and 11. Enactment by Congress of a general Employers' Liability law.

The minority report was briefly debated on the floor of the convention. Albert J. Hopkins, of Illinois, the chairman of the committee on resolutions, said:

"Everything that is Republican in any one of those planks is already adopted in the majority report. We [the committee] rejected in those planks that have been offered by the gentleman from Wisconsin the doctrines of socialism embodied in them. The ques

tion for you to determine is whether you will stand by the report of the majority, or whether you will take the Socialist-Democratic utterances of Wisconsin."

Separate votes by roll-call were taken on Mr. Cooper's resolutions Nos. 1, 4, and 5, with the following results: No. 1-ayes 63, nays 917; No. 4-ayes 114, nays 866; No. 5-ayes 94, nays 880. The remaining resolutions were voted on as a whole and rejected by 28 ayes to 952 nays.

Democratic Party

Convention held in Denver, July 7-10, 1908. Temporary chairman, Theodore A. Bell, of California; permanent chairman, Henry D. Clayton, of Alabama. On the first day of the convention, immediately after completion of the organization, resolutions on the death of Grover Cleveland, offered by I. J. Dunn, of Nebraska, were adopted,1 and as a further mark of respect to the departed leader adjournment was taken until the following day.

The convention nominated William J. Bryan for

1A more extended and laudatory expression in honor of Mr. Cleveland had been prepared for submission to the convention by Alton B. Parker, but before he could present it Mr. Dunn had been recognized by the chairman, and so the Dunn resolutions had priority. Mr. Parker thereupon rose and read his intended expression, but did not offer it as a substitute.

The incident has been referred to by some writers as evidencing a purpose on the part of Mr. Cleveland's old antagonists-if not of the Democratic convention itself—to do him but scant honor. But the wording of the

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President, only one ballot being taken, which stood: Bryan, 8882; George Gray, of Delaware, 59%; John A. Johnson, of Minnesota, 46.

John W. Kern, of Indiana, was nominated for VicePresident by acclamation.

Platform (unanimously adopted):

"We, the representatives of the Democracy of the United States, in national convention assembled, reaffirm our belief in, and pledge our loyalty to, the principles of the party.

"We rejoice at the increasing signs of an awakening throughout the country. The various investigations have traced graft and political corruption to the representatives of predatory wealth, and laid bare the unscrupulous methods by which they have debauched elections and preyed upon a defenseless public through the subservient officials whom they have raised to place and power.

"The conscience of the nation is now aroused to free the government from the grip of those who have made it a business asset of the favor-seeking corporations. It must become again a people's government, and be administered in all its departments according to the Jeffersonian maxim, 'Equal rights to all; special privileges to none.'

"Shall the people rule? is the overshadowing issue which manifests itself in all the questions now under discussion.

"Increase of Office-Holders.-Coincident with the enormous increase in expenditures is a like addition to the number of office-holders. During the past year 23,784 were added, costing $16,156,000, and in the past six years of Republican administration the total number of new offices created, aside from many commissions, has been 99,319,

Dunn resolutions gave no indication of such a design. The following tribute was paid in them to Mr. Cleveland:

"We, the delegates of the party in national convention assembled, recognize in him one of the strongest and ablest characters known to the world's statesmanship, who possessed to an extraordinary degree the elements of leadership and by his able, conscientious, and forceful administration of public affairs reflected honor upon his country and upon his party."

See Official Report of the convention, pp. 31-35.

entailing an additional expenditure of nearly $70,000,000, as against only 10,279 new offices created under the Cleveland and McKinley administrations, which involved an expenditure of only $6,000,000. We denounce this great and growing increase in the number of officeholders as not only unnecessary and wasteful, but also as clearly indicating a deliberate purpose on the part of the administration to keep the Republican party in power at public expense by thus increasing the number of its retainers and dependents. Such procedure we declare to be no less dangerous and corrupt than the open purchase of votes at the polls.

"Economy in Administration.-The Republican Congress in the session just ended made appropriations amounting to $1,008,000,000, exceeding the total expenditures of the past fiscal year by $90,000,000 and leaving a deficit of more than $60,000,000 for the fiscal year just ended. We denounce the heedless waste of the people's money which has resulted in this appalling increase as a shameful violation of all prudent considerations of government and as no less than a crime against the millions of working men and women, from whose earnings the great proportion of these colossal sums must be extorted through excessive tariff exactions and other indirect methods. It is not surprising that in the face of this shocking record the Republican platform contains no reference to economical administration or promise thereof in the future. We demand that a stop be put to this frightful extravagance, and insist upon the strictest economy in every department compatible with frugal and efficient administration.

"Arbitrary Power-The Speaker.-The House of Representatives was designed by the fathers of the Constitution to be the popular branch of our government, responsive to the public will.

"The House of Representatives, as controlled in recent years by the Republican party, has ceased to be a deliberative and legislative body responsive to the will of a majority of its members, but has come under the absolute domination of the Speaker, who has entire control of its deliberations and powers of legislation.

"We have observed with amazement the popular branch of our Federal government helpless to obtain either the consideration or enactment of measures desired by a majority of its members.

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"Legislative control becomes a failure when one member in the person of the Speaker is more powerful than the entire body.

"We demand that the House of Representatives shall again become a deliberative body, controlled by a majority of the people's representatives, and not by the Speaker; and we pledge ourselves to adopt such rules and regulations to govern the House of Representatives as will enable a majority of its members to direct its deliberations and control legislation.

"Misuse of Patronage.-We condemn as a violation of the spirit of our institutions the action of the present Chief-Executive in using the patronage of his high office to secure the nomination for the Presidency of one of his cabinet officers. A forced succession to the Presidency is scarcely less repugnant to public sentiment than is life tenure in that office. No good intention on the part of the Executive, and no virtue in the one selected, can justify the establishment of a dynasty. The right of the people freely to select their officials is inalienable and cannot be delegated.

"Publicity of Campaign Contributions. We demand Federal legislation forever terminating the partnership which has existed between corporations of the country and the Republican party under the expressed or implied agreement that in return for the contribution of great sums of money wherewith to purchase elections, they should be allowed to continue substantially unmolested in their efforts to encroach upon the rights of the people.

"Any reasonable doubt as to the existence of this relation has been forever dispelled by the sworn testimony of witnesses examined in the insurance investigation in New York, and the open admission of a single individual-unchallenged by the Republican national committee -that he himself, at the personal request of the Republican candidate for the Presidency, raised over a quarter of a million dollars to be used in a single State during the closing hours of the last campaign. Iq order that this practice shall be stopped for all time, we demand the passage of a statute punishing by imprisonment any officer of a corporation who shall either contribute on behalf of or consent to the contribution by a corporation of any money or thing of value to be used