Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-10-27
NIGHTMARES.
THEY ARE TROUBLING THE DEMO-
CRATIC LEADERS NIGHTLY.
The Issues Which the Platform Offers
Are Proving Troublesome-The Voters
Are Pleased with Present Conditions
and Can't Be Persuaded to Change.
Especial Correspondence

OF Democratic alarm over the political
situation continue to make themselves
apparent. The frequent conferences
between Mr.. Cleveland and the various
members OF the committee which is
trying 10 run the campaign indicate
great anxiety. And there seems little
reason to believe that the DEVELOPMENTS
have been very satisfactory. The night
mare of free trade, wildcat currency.
pension vetoes and other peculiarities OF
the Democratic platform seems to disturb
them. With Democrats at every hand
denounclnS the free trade plank of the
platform, English newspapers expressing
hope Of Democratic success, leaders of
the Farmers Alliance denouncing the
wildcat money scheme which is made a
prominent part of the party's principles.
old soldiers getting ready to avenge Mr..
Clevelands treatment of their comrades,
and bitter fight continuing to rage be-
tween the two factions of the party here.
the chances for Democratic success seem
to be exceedingly slim.
Harmony That Doesn't Count.
There is a good deal of disappoint-
ment among Democrats over the evil
dent failure of the attempt at harmony
which Mr.. Cleveland and Mr.. Dickin-
son put up. The more the matter is
studied the more evident it appears that
the attempt was unsuccessful. The at
tack made by the national committee
upon Labor Commissioner Peck within
few hours of the time of Mr.. Cleye-
lands dinner to certain of the Hill fol-
lowing seems to have upset any pros
poets of harmony that may have been
hoped for as result of that dinner.
Commissioner Peck is close friend of
Senator Hill, and as such the attack
made upon him by the national COM
mittee is naturally, and quite properly,
resented by Senator Hills friends gen
orally.
In Il Peek of Trouble.
The efforts of the Democratic national
committee to discredit and generally
tear to pieces Commissioner Peck's re-
port create a good deal of amusement.
1t is evident that they are hard hit.
Word comes from all the state and all
over the United States that it is proving
very damaging thing for the Demo.
Gratis, and is evidence out of the
mouths of their own party of the fallacv
Of their free trade theories. The ut
most efforts which they have made to
discredit 1T or lessen its effects have
been unsuccessful.
The Wildcat Currency Troubles Them.
Another feature of the campaign
which is giving the Democrats a good
deal of anxiety is the prominence of that
feature of their platform relating to a
repeal OF the tax on state bank notes, with
the purpose of returning to the wild
cat currency of antebellum times. This
proposition is condemned by all classes
of citizens. There is not a man found
willing to open his mouth in its favor.
and people are now wondering how it is
that it was ever put into the platform.
The explanation is found in the frantic
attempt which the authors of the plat
form were making to satisfy in some way
the demand of the south and west for
''more money" AS they We're unable to
put free silver into the platform upon
which they were to put Mr.. Cleveland AS
a candidate, they felt in duty bound to
do something else to placate that ele-
ment demanding ''more money!" and so
prevent 1t from going over to the third
party. Hence it was that the repeal of
the tax on state banks was proposed. It
was simply a tub thrown to the ''more
whale, but it promises to prove
very disastrous to the people who threw
it. With the president of the Farm
ers Alliance, of New York protestin.
against this proposition as one which
would bring disaster to the country gen
orally and to farmers in particular, the
leaders of the party begin to see plainly
that they have made q mess of it in this
particular and wish that the wildcat
scheme was out of their platform.
The Rainbow Chasers.
The rainbow chasers seem to have sub
sided. You hear scarcely anything more
of the talk about carrying western states.
The ''sick Cleveland fund" is dead fail |
ure. With Il hundred or two hundred
newspapers all over the country clamor-
ing for subscriptions, the total aside
from the amount subscribed by three O"
four newspapers which expected to get |
an advertisement out of the scheme, is a
mere tritie, and shows that the people |
are taking no interest and have no con-
fdence in the claim that it is possible to |
carry any western state.
English Support the Democrats.
Another circumstance which has de- |
pressed Democratic stock materially is
the arrival of number of English news
papers complaining bitterly of the injury !
being done to English markets and manu-
features by the Mckinley tariff and its |
accompanying feature of reciprocity. |
These statements show that the British |
and exporters are already |
heavy losses in their business
with other countries by reason of the
new American tariff. The reciprocity
feature of the tariff is distressing them
greatly. The fact that the United States
is able to send its goods free of duty into
countries where British goods have been
going III great quantities under heavy
tariff payment Is damaging their trade
very greatly and proportionately i'm
proving that Of the United States.
Republicans Cheerful and Confident.
On the other hand the Republicans al.
N excellent shape. There is perfect har-
nony in their ranks, the business people
md the masses find themselves we'll salts
led with the prosperity which the Re-
publican tariff and a Republican system
# finances has brought, and there are
lccessi0ns to the ranks of the party from
svery direction; not only from those who
we're formerly i'll the Democratic party,
put from the intelligent young voters
Who are this time TO ca ST their first ballot !