Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 55, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 March 1920 — LEONARD WOOD'S PLATFORM. [ARTICLE]

LEONARD WOOD'S PLATFORM.

Gen. Wood has no oratorical gnc- ; es; he can not clothe platitudes ih < flowery words or use high-sounding ] language to conceal his true sentiments; his speech is of the direct, ; straightforward sort that carries , conviction to his hearers because it • is so obviously a sincere expression ' of his thoughts and beliefs. < The general’s speech ait Yankton, < S. D., on Wednesday was his most , extended utterance of the campaign < and was full of plain, practical ; American common sense. His < thoughts on most public questions < chime well, it may be believed, with !' those of the average citizen who ' < considers calmly and quietly the j problems of the day and perhaps■ J with those of certain other candi- ] < dates, but there was an element in * his talk that is not usually found in , political speeches. Few candidates ’ for public office, high or small, urge J the Golden Rule as a principle of < action, but Gen. Wood recommends ' it as a means of bringing about J more sympathetic and human rela- < tions between capital and labor. He * covers a good deal of ground in his < South Dakota speech, but he pre- < sents the same principles in briefer ’ form in a letter to a friend, which < is really his political platform, and ; the labor plank, the longest in the , list, is worth reproducing *in full. <

He says: “Relations between capital and la-bor—-between those who work and those who direct—must be on the basis of a square deal to labor and a square deal to capital; a wage which, with thrift and industry, will enable a man to live and save. We must provide the necessary machinery promptly to investigate conditions at issue in strikes and for making the same public. We can largely control these conditions through sound public opinion, but sound public opinion can not 'be created without intelligent and frank publicity. We must strive to increase the human element in the relations between employers and employes. We must see that labor has suitable working conditions. We must abolish child labor. We must give an honest day’s wage for an honest day’s work, and in turn labor must give an honest day’s work. We must not only let live but help to live.” What could be fairer or more comprehensive than this? honest employer or worker could ask for better conditions than these principles when applied would bring about? Gen. Wood also declares himself in favor of spreading the war burden of debt over a longer period of years than at present contemplated so that the strangle hold of excess profit taxation may be removed from business men. Good business, he adds, should receive all possible encouragement. This is a suggestion that will commend itself as a practical and sensible means of relieving the strain on business. There is no good reason why this generation should be handicapped by the necessity of paying the entire war debt. We are still paying some of the costs of the civil war and the country would, never have reached the great prosperity attained in the decades following that war if the debt, which was a trifle compared to the expenses of the government in the world war, had not been spread along into this century. Gen. Wood favors private ownership of railroads, a “small but excellent army and ever ready navy, a protective tariff sufficient to protect such industries as- need protection, the development of a merchant marine to aid our trade and our navy and a government budget system in the interest of economy. We should institute the most rigid government economies, he declares. We must see to it that there is no class legislation, and we must build up respect for law and order, the rights of the individual and the rights of property, “for everything rests on this.” Our international policy should be strong, dignified and conservative; we should “speak softly, but carry a big stick, love peace and the square deal, but be ready to protect American trade and American interests.” The above quotation from Theodore Roosevelt embodies the belief of many Americans and the platform outlined by the general would undoubtedly be indorsed by Roosevelt if he were alive. It is an expression of sound Americanism such as his name is associated with and it is a proof of the impress of his influence that many men and newspapers that had no praise for Roosevelt and even reviled bun when living are now supporters of Leonard Wood, a man of similar type, representing the same rugged, uncompromising Americanism. —'Indianapolis Star.