The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-01-11
A DrscoRpAsr DEMOCRACY.

a
Mr.. Mills, of Texas, says that the agita-
ton of the free coinage of silver will cost
the Democracy all of their Eastern States
and gain none in the West and he
would postpone the silver question until
the tariff isreduced On the tariff issue
eve have won the country and can
hold it''
Mr.. Mills is sound in his conclusion that
to press the free coinage of silver viii cost
the Democracy the Eastern States, and
yet he does not seem to understand that
his defeat for Speaker was due to the fact
that his extreme position of absolute free
trade and an income tax is not approved
by the Hill-Gorman and Brice Demo-
cracy, who now control Congress. Mr..
Mills certainly was not beaten bee ause
of his views as to the wisdom of RELOCATING
free silver coinage to the rear, for Hill,
German and Springer do not favor the
passage of a free coinage bill. Mills was
beaten because his extreme position on the
subject of the tariff is one upon which the
conservative Northern Democrats know
that their party cannot carry the doubtful
states. The policy of tariff reform"
rather than the extreme position of Mills is
favored by the anti-Mills faction that now
controls the Democratic majority in the
House.
The mugwump journals of New York,
Boston and Providence, who support
Cleveland, preferred Mills to
Crisp for speaker. These journals
are all strongly opposed to free
silver" but support free trade"
The Southern and Northern straight DEM
ocratic journals which have been adj
vanced advocates of the Cleveland Mills
idea of free trade are outspoken in their
expressions of disappointment at the de-
feat of Mills. These journals include the
Buffalo Courier, the Philadelphia Record,
the Louisville Courier-Journat, the st.
Louis Republic, the Memphis Commercial.
the Charleston News and Courier. the Balti-
more Sun, the Atlanta Journal, the Men,
phis Archaeological. On the other hand
the Crisp faction is supported by the
New York Sun, the Nashville Ban
ner, the Richmond Dispatch, the Atlanta
Constitution, and many other leading
Democratic newspapers of the South. The
Hin-Tammany press of New York state is
a unit against the Cleveland Mills free
trade folly, which they confess wrecked the
Democratic party in 1888 and threatens to
wreck it again in 1892 The Democracy,
North and South, is clearly divided into
two tariff camps, viz: Free trade" and
'anti-free trade" The Nashville Banner
says:
The Democracy can't afford to put itself out of
harmony with the established business interests
of the country TO court the favor OF the unsettled
and restless elements that are clamoring for
anything 40 that 1t be change of the most
radical and sweeping character. Democracy
should be the great conservative force of the
country, strong in the confidence of the SUBJ
stantial interests, and prompt and powerful to
resist the efforts OF extremists and agitators.
There is strong evidence of an anti
Crisp combination in the House. This
combination includes the New England
Democratic members, who are for Cleve-
land and free trade, and the Mills-Cleye-
land adherents in other states. Among
the anti-Crisp rebels are counted the
Kentucky members and Mr.. McMillin, of
Tennessee. The bitterness of the anti
Crisp combination is thus voiced by the
Charleston Nea0s and Courier:
Blunder No. The election of the Hon.
Charles L. Crisp az speaker of the House of
Representatives.
Blunder No, 2.-speaker Crisps appointment
OF Mr.. Springer as chairman OF the committee
on ways and means.
The Democratic party has msds bad start
The outlook is not encouraging for 1892 and we
fear that the presidency has been sacrificed for
the speskership. Mr. Reed has gone into his
tory rs the speaker who was bigger than the
the people; Mr.. Crisp viii take mis- place In the
portrait gallery of the House the speaker
who used his Office to pay his political debts
The Republicans Ought 10 be very happy
They are never so lucky as when the Democrats
have big majority.
Senator Carlisle, of Kentucky, who once
was willing to risk free silver coinage, now
denounces it as a scheme to donate mill
lions TO the mine-owners and spectators
and Governor Hills proposition of a
change OF a gold-siiver ratio from Is to 1
back TO 15iE TO l would be worse than free
coinage under the present ratio. He
would now wait while and see VIII at the
future may develop, meantime doing
what is possible to bring about an inter-
national agreement on the subject. And
then Mr.. Carlisle proceeds to show how a
deprecated dollar must hurt the laborer.
who has nothing to hoard, and who must
take whatever dollar the government has
made legal tender, which in his case is al
ways the cheaper dollar
1t is clear that the defeat of Mills was
not due TO his disposition to abandon the
agitation of free silver coinage. for the
leaders of the Crisp faction, like Hill,
German and Brice. are opposed to free
silver coinage; he was beaten because of
his advanced position of free trade" The
truth is that the fight for the Democratic
nomination in 1892 began with Cleveland
losing FIRST blood" or rather getting a
black eye in the defeat of Mills, and the
Cleveland and anti-Cleveland camps are
now sparring for wind before they seriously
strike again. The Washington CORE
spondent of the New York Sun reviews the
situation, and reaches the following con-
clusion;
This IS a Hill or Gormaa congress. The rec
ord Of the popular branch OF ii will constitute
the psrty's platform in is92, and the candidate
whose expressed views and known services are
nearest in accord with that record. when COM
plete. viii be the nominee. The three Eost
prominent candidates are each senators
namely, Hill, German and Palmer. Palmer
comes from a state invariably Republican
sga..e - -,