Newspaper Page Text
rHTiqn?$
The Commoner.
those democrats, or so-called democrats, who
find in the tariff question about the only tio
vhioh hinds them to the democratic party, and
yet th'o absurdity of their position is evident
from the fact that they voted for Mr. McKiu
loy, the high priest of protection, in order to
loouro the gold standard. They now declare
that tho money question is dead, and that tliey
want to return to tho democratic party, or
rather, as they express it, are willing to allow
tho democratic party to return to them. And
yet they are so afraid of an issue which they
call dead that they will vote for a high tariff,
trust-controlled and imperialistic administra
tion rather than support a democratic tickets
on a platform endorsing free silver.
Tho tariff question is an important ques
tion, and tho democratic position on tho tariff
question remains unchanged, but the question
of imperialism is more important than all tho
other national questions combined, and tho trust
question is at present more important than a
question of taxation, for if the trusts are al
lowed to obtain control of the industries of the
country t will "hn difliniilfc to Ttn.HR jittv 1nw
( i -w - mr. i AW f m r H a mm a Hik W M - f AM f
which they oppose.
Tho money question, ignored entirely by
tho Ohio convention, is more important than
tho tariff question. While the increased pro
motion of gold has brought in part tho relief
W-hich bimetallism would have brought in a
largo measure, there, is no assurance that tho
present or prospective supply of gold will be
Sufficient for a universal gold standard, and
this country cannot afford to declare for the
w. gold standard until there is enough gold for
the whole world. "We must consider not only
present conditions, but those that would be
produced by a universal gold, standard. Ac
cording to the London Economist, prices have
already commenced to fall, and Germany is
even now suffering from an industrial depres-
js.'juon. Present conditions are now abnormal
and no one can safely assert the sufficiency of
the supply of gold. While circumstances are
determining what financial legislation may be
necessary, it is criminal folly for democrats to
court the favor of financiers by silence upon
f the money question. The same great financiers
who threatened a panic in case of the adoption
of free silver have their vaults full of trust
certificates, and will fight any anti-trust lcgis-
' lation as hard as they fought bimetallism.
Those sami) financiers are pecuniarily interested
in the railroad pools, and will fight any regu-
' lation of railroad rates. They are also inter
ested in the syndicates formed to exploit tho
Philippine Islands, and will oppose any resto
ration of constitutional government or of the
doctrines set forth in tho Declaration of Inde
pendence. The democratic party of Ohio can
- not secure the support of the financial element
of thecountry unlesp it endorses all, the repub-
uoan policies, jraruai repentance will not re-
HtorA til ft flmrtrtArn.t.in r nrf.tr in tmm-, ?, TXT-n
, w..ww,v..v. jh-uj iu j.uvux m ty uu
Street. If tho party wants to collect campaign
contributions from the corporations; .if it de
sires to bask in tho smiloB of the great finan
ciers, it must be entirely Clevelandized. And
even then it is likely to get flattery rather than
votes from tho men who control tho policy of
tho i cpublican party and, during Mr. Cleve
land's administration, controlled ""the policy of
tho democratic party. In the campaign of
1800, tho democratic party received four hun
dred and seventy-seven thousand votes in Ohio
seventy-three thousand more than Mr. Cleve
land reoeived in that state four years before.
Tho democratic ticket received nearly four
hundred and seventy-five thousand votes in
Ohio "last year when it stood for the Kansas
City platform. These are the voters to whom
the democratic organization of Ohio must ap
peal, and tho state committee should lose no
time in assuring tho voters that democracy in
Ohio means the same thing that it did last fall.
There is no evidence of a change among tho
voters, and the party in Ohio cannot afford to
alienate a large number of real democrats in
order to gratify a small number of men who
have become so accustomed to adulterating
their democracy that they are not good judges
of the pure article. Mr. Kilbourne supported
the ticket in 1896 and in 1900 and the more
ho emphasizes his adherence to tho princi
ples for which tho party stood in these cam
paigns the stronger ho will be.
W
Principles, Not Hen.
Mr. McLean mates a mistake when ho as
sumes that ho can overthrow the Kansas City
platform by attacking Mr. Bryan. He was so
exultant over tho triumph which he achieved
in the recent .Ohio convention that his paper,,
the Enquirer, contained .the following editorial
item:
"Since the adoption of the Ohio democratic
plal-Tjrm perhaps Marse Henry Watterson will
not regard it as necessary to persevere in a con
troversy with William Jennings Bryan."
It has been an open secret for some time
that Mr. McLean did not like Mr. Bryan but the
public 1b not so much interested in knowing Mr.
McLean opinion of Mr. Bryan as it is in know
ing his views on public questions. Mr. McLean
aspires to represent Ohio in the United 'States
senate and as a senator holding office for six
years he would vote on Beveral important ques
tions. His platform denounces trusts but the
remedies proposed are not sufficient; he ought
to endorse the remedies set forth in the Kan
sas City platform or suggest others equally
good.
His platform denounces imperialism; foe
ought to endorse the remedy proposed by the
Kansas City platform or suggest some other
remedy equally as good. His platform does
not state his views on government by injunc
tion, arbitration and the black list; Mr. Mo
Lean ought to make his position clear on these
points.
Mr. McLean will have to vote on various,
phases of the money question. Whether con
grosswill have to deal with the proposition to
open the mintB to tho free and unlimited coin
age of silver at tho ratio of 16 to 1 will depend
upon conditions. No one is able to speak
with certainty upon the subject, but tho re
publicans are pushing the following:
BILL.
To maintain the legal tender silver dollar at parity
with gold. - r
Bo it enacted by the senate and house of rep
resentatives of tho United States of America !b
congress assembled, That the secretary of the
treasury is hereby authorized to coin tho silver
bullion in the treasury, purchased under the act
of July 14th, J890, into such denominations of
subsidiary silver coin as he may deem necessary
to meet public requirements, and thereafter, as .
public necessities may demand, to recoin silver
dollars into subsidiary coin, and as much of any
act as fixes a limit to the aggregate of subsidiary
silver coin outstanding, and so much of any act
an directs the coinage of any portion of the bullion
purchased under the act of July 14th, 1890, into .
standard silver dollars, is hereby repealed.
The secretary of the treasury is hereby di
rected to maintain at all times at parity with gold
the legal tender silver dollars remaining outstand
ing; and to that end he is hereby directed to ex
change gold for Jegal tender silver dollars when
presented to the treasury in the sum of live dol
lars or any multiple thereof, and all provisions
of law for the use or maintenance of the reserve
fund in the treasury relating to United States
notes are, in the discretion ,of the secretary of the
treasury, hereby made applicable to the exchange
of legal tender silver dollars.
Mr. McLean resides at the .national capital
and knows wliat is going on, why was hia.
platform silent about this question? It is easy
to "sit down on" Mr. Bryan lie is only ini-,
pQrtant as he aids in accomplishing reforms
but to "sit down on" democratic principles
and a .national platform is a more serious mat
ter. Before Mr. McLean puts on the sena
torial toga hods likely to discover that the,
yotors of the democratic party are a great deal,
more interested in principles .than: they .are in,
individuals.
1 :fCj&&'
k
Wishing.
By JonN Q. Saxe,
I wish that Sympathy and Love, -
And every human passion
That has its origin above,
Would come and keep in fashion;
That Scorn and Jealousy and Hate,
And every base emotion,
Were buried fifty fathoms deep v
Beneath the waves of Ocean!
I wish that friends were always .true,
And motives always pure;
I wish the good were not so few,
I wish the bad were fewer;
I wish that parsons ne'er forgot
To heed their pious teaching;
I wish that practicing was not
So different from preaching!
" -
."-V
.
s1'
nrri
o
,w
7 A.
yA
'Xr
vSjy
J&W
I wish that modest worth might be'
Appraised with truth and candor;
I wish that innocence were free
From treachery and slander,
I wish that men their vows would mind;
That women ne'er .were rovers;
I wish that wives were always kind,
And husbands always lovers!
s
,J
it j-
I wish in fine that Joy and Mirth '
And every good Ideal,
May come erewhile throughout the earth
To be the glorious Real; - ,'.lp
Till God shall every creature bless 5 "
With His Sunremest blessinc. : '&V
And Hone ba lost in HannlnfiRs. ' ' ? Fs'i
And Wishing in Possessing!
'&
;-
ft
K
v
yv r-.V
Now that King Edward has decided to re
lieve the Peers of the necessity of kissing him
at tho time of his coronation Mr. Hanna ought
to bo less exacting of ' tho republican leadora
who pay homage to him.
-'4
