BRYAN GREETED
BY THOUSANDS.
DEMOCRATIC LEADER GETS GLAD
HAND IN KANSAS CITY.
HE APPEALS FOR
MORE FUNDS.
ADDRESSES GREAT GATHERING
IN THE OPEN AIR.
After Speaking in Independence He
Is Brought Here in Automobile.
It was a madly driven string of flag-bedecked automobiles that dashed over to Independence yesterday and whisked Candidate William Jennings Bryan to the Parade. Speaches were made at both ends of the trip by the Democratic leaders, adn it all took place within two hours.
It was a regular honk, honk affair, and thirty cars containing at least 150 persons made the trip. On the return, it was a veritable race and several times the pike was blocked with chugging machines, each trying to extricate itself and get to Kansas City first.
Little groups of suburbanites stood at every rural mail box and cheered as the flying autos went by with Mr. Bryan, and then they stayed to cheer the tail of the gasoline propelled comet. It is certain that those who live on the south side of the intercity road will have to clean house today for clouds of dust were stirred up by the wheels of the whizz-wagons. It is also certain that Mr. Bryan, in all the campaign, has never been treated to a more strenuous trip than when he was born over the Jackson county hills by Kansas City's flying automobile squadron.
WHEN BRYAN ARRIVED.
William P. Borland, congressional aspirant, was holding the crowd of perhaps 2,000 when the Bryan special arrived at Independence. The presidential candidate was led to an auto and taken to the courthouse square, where he was greeted by cheers. He did not speak more than fifteen minutes and when he broke off he told the corwd that he would come back and finish his speech if they would elect him.
"I wish I had the power of Joshua," said Mr. Bryan, "that I might make the sun stand still and talk to you, without encroaching on Kansas City's time. Although I have not the power to control the movements of the sun, I can make the Republicans move.
They have reason to show fright, for the people are now coming to believe that the Democratic party is the one source of relief from present conditions and that through it alone can freedom of speech,, conscience and of the individual to use what he earns, be assured. The Republicans have nurtured predatory wealth which allows the few to prey upon the many. Our creed is that this should be corrected by suffrage, and we plead for an honest election. To get it we must have publicity of campaign contributions that the people may konw the sources of financial influence in carrying on our campaign."
OFF FOR KANSAS CITY.
When he finished speaking, a flying wedge formed around Mr. Bryan and broke the way through the crowd to his automobile in the court house yard. It seemed that the chauffeurs hardly took time to crank up, for in a trice the honk-honk procession was off for Kansas City.
"There's another proof that the corporations are agin' us," remarked a Democratic autoist savagely as a long Kansas City Southern train rolled leisurely across the roadway and cut about half of the flying procession from further progress for seven maddening minutes. Nearly twenty cars reluctantly obeyed the stop lever and stood trembling with nervous rage, spitefully repeating all the cuss words in an autombile's vocabulary of profanity. One owner vowed that his French car was chugging, "sacre bleu!" At last the train passed, the gates lifted and just in time to miss being hurdled and the autos dashed forward.
THOUSANDS GREET HIM.
Ten thousand persons must have been awaiting the candidate at the Parade where he made an appeal for more contributions to the campaign fund.
"We have already raised from $160,000 to $180,000 by contributions from the people, in addition to the $40,000 left over from the sum subscribed in Denver to pay for the convention. We have fixed the limit of single contributions at $10,000 but find that we have placed it unnecessarily high. But two or three gifts have been made amounting to more than $1,000. I believe it is better for an administration to owe its election to all the people than to a few favor-seeking corporations. We need at least $100,000 more between now and election day, and Democrats ought to raise it."
"If elected, I promise to call a special session of congress to enact legislation whereby United States Senators shall be elected by a direct vote of the people. I believe there should be a department of labor, with its head in the president's cabinet. The laborers are entitled to it, and I want a representative of labor with who m to consult in the event that I am made president."
After taking a few facetious raps at President Roosevelt on the strength of his proposed African hunting trip, and at Longworth for expressing the wish that his father-in-law may be elected eight years hence, Mr. Bryan stopped, and was whirled through the downtonw streets in his auto to the Hanibal bridge, where he deaprted for St. Joseph.
