Democratic Sentinel, Volume 22, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 September 1898 — POLITICS OF THE DAY [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

POLITICS OF THE DAY

SILVER WILL BE THE ISSUE. Republican newspapers are busy telling what the Democratic party ought to do in 1900. These excellent and entirely disinterested journals are firmly convinced that the free silver issue should be dropped, and William J. Bryan, as a matter of course, dropped also. Many of these sapient newspapers go further than the giving of this sort of good advice and assert that the things they so earnestly desire will actually come to pass and that free silver will die for certain and Bryan retire for good. Among these hopeful journals Is the St. Louis Globe-Demo-crat, wliich says it does not believe silver will be the chief issue in 1900. “Silver will probably be mentioned in the platform of 1900. but It will be in a shuffling and shame-faced sort of a way,which will allow the party’s stump speakers to shout for honest money in the honest-money localities and to howl for silver elsewhere.” Up to date there hasn't been much of this “shuffling” on the part of the Democrats, and the indications are that there will be none of it. In discussing this suggestion the Washington Post, a strong gold advocate, says: “Mr. Bryan and his suporters proposed to bridge the gap between the two metals and make them circulate side by side at the ratio of 16 to 1. We think the GlobeDemocrat will cheerfully admit that it would be a great and good thing for this country, with its immense stake in silver, if that proposition could be carried into effect. And the fact that one man, one newspaper, or one party believes it an absurd, impossible scheme Is not good proof that another man, another new spaper, or another party does

not believe it altogether sound, practicable, and, in all respects, desirable.” Viewing the question in that light the Democrats will not abandon the money issue this year nor any other year until It is settled and settled right. Why Bryan Is Silent. Small-minded editors of gold advocating newspapers continue to attack William J. Bryan because of his dignified silence on political questions since he became an officer in the army of the United States. Men of sense know that it would be a breach of military ethics for Colonel Bryan to discuss matters of public interest. His position is that of a soldier, and soldiers are expected to give and to receive orders, and do things and not to talk. It is rather out of character that such a paper as the Baltimore American should join the gang of yelping critics, but it has been guilty of saying: “It seems a little strange, but this country has not heard from William Jennings Bryan for some time now.” Of course, the Baltimore American knows why Bryan has remained Silent. It should respect and commend him for that silence instead of making slurring remarks. The animus of these attacks is fear of the man attacked and a desire to break his influence over the people by any and all kinds of means.

But William Jennings Bryan cannot be injured by such witless, causeless, unjust criticism. He is acting strictly in the line of his duty, and he is winning the respect of honest foes and the admiration of the people by his judicious, manly and soldierly conduct. When William Jennings Bryan leaves the army of the United States and lays aside the uniform which he now wears, this “country will hear from him.” His voice will once more be raised in the cause of the people, and the Baltimore American can rest assured that while its" present jeers cannot make him speak, its future attacks will not be able to make him remain silent.—Chicago Democrat. Free Silver in lowa. Silver sentiment, which has been reposed “dead” by the Republican press, came to life again at the lowa state convention of Democrats, Silver Republicans and Populists. For a “dead issue” the question of free coinage of silver has a peculiarly stubborn habit of coming to life in Democratic state conventions, and the funeral ceremonies so frequently announced by the Republicans are thus postponed from time to time. At Marshalltown, lowa, the free silver corpse was able to “sit up and take notice.” and the fusion convention adopted unanimously’ the following leading plank in the platform: The Democracy of lowa in State convention assembled discern in the Democratic national platform of 1896, which we hereby heartily reaffirm, the best expression of Democratic principles enunciated since Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. The utterances of that platform concerning finance explicitly define our faith on the money question. The free and unlimited coinage of silver and gold at the ratio of 16 to 1 we hold to be indispensable to the financial, industrial and political independence of our people, and recognizing W’. J. Bryan as pre-eminently the representative and exponent of the platform, we earnestly favor his nomination for President of the United States in 1900. Under the circumstances the Republican* will be forced to admit, before

long that the issue which they are so’ anxious to bury is very much alive, and they may find cause to regret that they hare thrown aside the mask of bimetallism under which they won the contest of 1896.—Chicago Democrat That Treasury Surplus. Under the influence of the war takes and because of the sale of bonds sash continues to flow into the United States treasury. But a few days ago th# cash balance was under the $300,(>00,000 mark. Now' it stands as follow’,: The cash balance has risen to $302(053,576 and the gold reserve to $225,538,076. Here is an increase of $7,566.45b in the cash balance and a nearly corresponding addition of $7,633,592 to the gold reserve in the five business days of September. There is still $35,000,000 to come into the treasury from the bond sale, and Secretary Gage is puzzled to know what to do with it. This accumulation of money is not a good thing for the government. It costs a monthly expenditure of $250,000 in loss of Interest and is a dead loss of $3,000,000 a year. If there were any good coming out of this condition of affairs' criticism would not be in order, but there is not good, and on the other hand there lv positive evil. This congested state of the treasury is an expense to the goy eminent and is also responsible for i great and most injurious contraction <f the currency. McKinley’s Narrowness i President McKinley has shown greit anxiety to have the Democrats represented on the peace commission.” I/ut in appointing Justice White the Pnsi-

dent ignored 6,500,000 real Democrats and gave the place to a man who represented 137,000 gold advocates who voted for Palmer and Buckner and thus helped elect McKinley. Now that Justice White has declined to serve, McKinley has hunted up another “Democrat”—Senator Gray—and as Gray hys accepted, the commission is made up of four sialwart administration mon and one assistant Republican, True Democrats will refuse to accept the President’s action as any sort of recognition. The 6,500,000 men who voted for William J. Bryan and who subsequently voted, through their representatives, for the declaration of war, the $50,000,000 appropriation given McKinley, the $200,000,000 worth of bonds, and every other measure to carry on the war, have been ignored by the President and denied a representation on the peace commission. In nothing more than in this appointment has McKinley shown his narrow, prejudiced, partisan spirit. He could not have won a victory over Spain without Democratic soldiers, sailors and votes, and yet he refuses to recognize the existence of the Democratic party.

5 Carrying Out the Policy. Judge Grosscup, of Chicago, with all his top-loftlcal flights of oratory, was consistent in his demand that after swallowing the Philippines our next movement should Ire in the direction of China and secure a slice of that territory. This is but the legitimate outcome of the spread-eagle policy; there is no end to it. In order to round our possessions in the archipelago we must have a part of China; in the language of the grasping .old farmer: “We want everything that jines us!”—Ottumwa, lowa, Democrat. \ h irge that Will Not • tick, Mark Hanna says the surgeons and <h p in- who tell stories of camp horrors re talk ng for political effect. We’, tny are nearly all talking, and they a 1 talk alike. Is it possible that all he su:g ons and chaplains in the volui teer ;,rmy are part san Denaoc ats. Why d d ’he Presdant go to the oth r party for men to fill these posts? DI n’t he give the Republican doctors and pre. chers any show at all?—Ht. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Swelling lhe Pension Roll. The names on the pension roll are now’ over the million mark, the exact number of pensioners being 1,040,356, and the list will keep on growing Irrespective of the war just ended. How many names the latter will add to the roll cannot now be estimated, but the number will be at least 50 per cent larg-

er than M/hould be. Spanish bullet* have BadU comparatively few pensioners; Spariah fevers will make more, but Imedcan mismanagement most of all.-Philtdelphia Record. Where Alger and McKinley Differ. /“I care no more for what the newspapers s.ry ab:ut me than I do for the breezes which blow through the I branches of the trees outside,” Is SecI Alger’s reply to the evidence of

liii incompetency published in the daily pn-s of the country. President McKktey is not “built that way.” As beween the press and Alger, there is noitelling what the President will do, becoming events will show the.Presidi regards the press as of more impedance to this future than his war sedetary.—Pittsburg Post. Thievery Among the Cause*. Bip captains and transportation agnts are not fools, the sons of somebodies are of average intelligence as a rue, and the national guard officer is ut aEy successful in business. It is reasonable to think that what these mffl do not know they should learn in tine, and in a short time at that. Any thiughtful observer of current events is >ound to conclude that plain, ordinary theft is playing no small part in tfe d i y record of army horrors.—-New sferk Tines. Making Use of the Soldier. / Having run the gantlet of Mauser gullets, yellow and typhoid fevers, exposure and overwork, the (returning soldier is now to furnish food for the tinhorn politicians who stayed in their holes w’hile the soldiers were suffering most, and are now making political capital out of sudden friendship for the sufferers.—St. Louis Republic. What Tanner's Opposition Means. Governor Tanner of Illinois is opposed to the “peace carnival” projected for Chicago this fall. As most of the people of Illinois are opposed to Tanner, his opposition doesn’t amount to much, beyond indicating that the peace carnival will be popular.—Sioux City Tribune.

Political Notes. Wheat is 63 cents. It has fallen more than a dollar during the present administration.—Salt Lake Herald. There ought to be a free coinage club in every school precinct in the country valley. Organize one in your precinct at once. Democrats who wish to “pair” with Hanna in his war policies will have to get into Hanna’s party to do it. This is reliable. Let Farmer Hobson get on his heaviest sixteen-to-one cowhide boots. There are a number of rascally false pretenders in politics who will have to be kicked out shortly. The army contractors rob the treasury in a scandalous way, but the robbery of locking millions of gold in the treasury while selling bonds to get more gold is still more scandalous. The Spanish war being over, the country will proceed to declare war on the Hanna campaign—contributing thieves who did our army more damage in the rear than the Spaniards did in the front. The war is over, but President McKinley is still holding $200,000,000 in gold in the treasury and the distribution of bonds goes on. Whatever puts up the price of gold puts down the price of wheat. Hon. Champ Clark is talking as if he meant something. Let him keep that up and be will be great. The country is suffering for men who mean something and are not too cowardly to say what they mean. The $200,000,000 in gold held cornered in the treasury would have paid all the expenses of the war without bonds or war taxes. But we have both bonds and war taxes to prevent this hoarded gold from circulating.

Alger and the War Office. Alger is an unanswerable argument for peace.—Memphis Commercial Appeal. The navy has remembered the Maine and the army will not forget Alger.— Pittsburg Post. True, Alger was made by his lumber interes's, but why speak of a wooden head to the war department?—Philadelphia. Times. Alger msy not have been in the push In the early months of 1865, but he is making up for it in the summer days of ’93.—A’•'anta Cons titution. Altho gh Mr. Sherman is an old man the vigor wl h which he is pursuing Al e’s trail hag given that gentleman a nervous attack.—Pittsburg Post. Ofiicals who are expecting the war depar ,ment will be whitewashed are fearfil that John Sherman may secure the li re contract. —Pittsburg Post. If General Miles has any political ambitio »this is h s time to exploit them. Sec.etaiy Alger will give him invaluable tiSj-lstince.—Philadelphia Ledger. Seciptary Alger thinks there is no need of an investigation. It is true that public sentiment is pretty well made up, but we should give the secretary a clrancje.—St Paul Dispatch. Can anybody explain the curious coineldi u e that camps that are plague spots lor soldieis always happen to be g Id mines for certain transportation comp irles?—New York Journal. Secretary Alger thinks so well of the water at Montauk Point that we may expect some enterprising Michigan firm of 1 ott e s will at once proceed to put it on the market.—Cleveland Plain Deal r. A good many of the men of the Eighth Ohio—‘the regiment known as “the President’s Own’’—are likely to vote for somebody else, if they feel as they feel now when 1900 comes.—Boston Glob’. The French colonel, Henri, who committed suicide because of the discovery that he forged the Dreyfus letter, furi'i-hes a hint to the incompetent medical officers of the American army. —Atlanta Constitution. Secretary Alger is not wise to threaten newspapers which publish the facts about him and his department work wth legal proceedings. His record 1* not the k nd to show up well in court —St. Lovis Post-Dispatch.