The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1876-08-29
TiIden in the West.

The Democrats of the East affect to re-
gard Mr.. Tilden's letter of acceptance as a
plea for speedy resumption of specie pay
ments. But in the West the Democrats :,
more clear-sighted or more honest, refuse to
stultify themselves, and interpret that YER
bose document as confession of surrender
to the soft-mOney men of their section. In
Ohio they claim that Tilden holds the same
views Allen did last year, and that the con-
test this fall is over the rag-baby issue. Allen
himself praises Tilden's letter as statesman
like exposition of the opinions of the Ohio
Democracy in opposition to contraction of
the currency, and in favor of maintaining an
outstanding issue OF greenbacks ''equal to
the wants of the business of the country"
and he is about to take the stump for Tilden
and Hendricks. All the rag-money Demo-
cratic papers in the West follow in his wake.
In Illinois the Democrats have ratified the
nomination of the Greenback candidate for
governor. In Kansas they have united with
the Greenbackers in nominating state tick
ct. In Indiana their gubernatorial candi-
date is an avowed infationist. Ewing, ablest
and most. notorious of the rag-money adyo-
Gates, expresses himself in the following un-
mistakable language:
But Mr.. TIlden has planted himself squarely
against the Republican scheme of forced re-
sumption. He also declares that no plan of re-
sumption should be adopted which will disturb
the business of the country by reducing the
volume of the currency below the legitimate
demands OF trade. In short. Mr.. TILDEN fo-
uorst Jus that mode of resumption aohich aoe
Ohio Democrats haze dl,oogs favored; and his
declarations as to the Uolanse of currency are
Just those ge made last gear, The fact Is, that
the Democracy will this fall make precisely the
issue they did with Gov. Allen at the head of
their ticket last fall, and will occupy the same
position precisely they did then, and on that
issue vote for Tilden. The issue can't he made
anything else in Ohio; that is the issue with
the people. We can stand on Mr.. Tilden's let
ter of acceptance, and make our fight success
fully, without retracting anything we.have said
or favored. Mr.. Tlden in bis letter, expresses
the views of the Ohio Democracy to dot on
the questions of resumption and the regulation
of the volume OF currency.
Throughout the West the same interpre-
tation is put upon letter and platform. The
Democrats 60 into the canvass with avowed
purpose of increasing the paper currency, of
ignoring all coin values, and plunging again
into the vast schemes of gambling and reck-
less speculation which must always end in
bankruptcy.
This plan of conducting the campaign is
of course approved by Mr.. Tilden. for he is
emphatically managing his own canvass,
not step is taken, not a document is circu-
lated, not a speech is made without his
consent previously given. In order to
achieve success he is willing to surrender the
convictions of a lifetime, to advocate the
political and financial schemes which he
denounced year ago in the strongest terms.
At the first summons from the West he
strikes his colors. And this man who SO
readily changes his principles, who so willing
ly deserts the right und esponses the wrong
| cause, is held up to the people as the model
reformer!