Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1892-08-02
Hon. Josiah Patterson's Predieament'


The esteemed Appeal.Avalanche
continues to exhibit nervousness in
defense of Congressman .Patterson's
vote against the Stewart bill, main
tanning that Col. Patterson was not
candidate for the domination for
Congress at the time Of his nomina-
ton, and therefore made no pledge
on the silver issue-especially the
Stewart bill-and that the people ex-
acted no pledge from him, but does
not deny that his remarkable cam
paign and jealous advocacy of free
coinage led to his unanimous nomi-
nation-a position he was so easily
defeated for by the gentleman he sue
ceeded when the silver.question was
not up. OF course the people exacted
no pledge after he had voluntarily
ayowed his sentiments with so much
emphasis. The LEAF-CHRoNICLE
does not care to continue this discus
sion; we think it best not, and feel
disposed to leave Mr.. Patterson in the
hands of his constituents, before
whom he must appear to reconcile
his Inconsistency. Mr.. Patterson's
own friends raise this issue by attack
ing our two Senators and seven De-
mocratic Congressm, u, severely critl-
cising their action in voting for the
Stewart bill, while eulogizing Mr..
Patterson's Democracy and patriot
ism for casting his vote with the two
Republicans, John Houk and ALI
Taylor, against it.
But for these uncalled for and I'M
warranted attacks, the LEAF-CHRoN-
ICbE should not have taken any no
tice OF Mr.. Patterson's position,
which is not improved by the APP
peal-Avalanche' able defense. The
plea is that of school boy in a game
of marbles. That part of the APP
peal-Avalanche's reply which claims
our attention are the following ex-
cerpts:
"Our contemporary must be very
poor at drawing distinctions if it can
not see any difference between the
Stewart bill and the kind of silver
coinage advocated by the Chicago
platform. The national Democracy
at Chicago pronounced in favor OF
free coinage of gold and silver dol
lars of equal intrinsic value. The
Stewart bill provided for nothing OF
the kind. Under this bill 70 cents
worth of silver in the market might
be coined into a dollar. 1t is
hardly necessary to say that the APP
peal-Avalancho' part in educating
the people on the free coinage ques-
ton consists in educating them as far
as it could to the position taken by
the Chicago platform.
1t appears that our able contempt
rary is no better at drawing distinc-
lions than the LEAF-CHRoNICLE.
Since it finds Its own position taken
in educating the people on the free
coinage question, consistent with the
position taken by the Chicago plat
form, it can have no grounds for diff
fering with the LEAF-CHRoNICLE,
nor our Democratic Congressman,
who thought it good policy TO force
upon Mr.. Harrison what his friends
were resisting for fear it would hurt
him and not MIR. Cleveland. That
bill goes not one whit further than
did the Appeal valanc he and Col
Patterson in educating the people on
the silver question. The Appeal.
Avalanche went 50 far in several
strong articles as to censure Mr.
Cleveland for his utterances on that
question and thought his silver let
ter had left him out of the line o
possibilities for the nomination.
If our contemporary finds no dis
tinction between its own teaching
and the Chicago platform, how Can i
find fault with our construction 0
that plank OF course we all favo
the coinage of gold and silver dollar
of equal intrinsic value, and that i
what free coinage means, restore t.
silver the intrinsic value it possessed
before ii was demonotized, and thel
there will be no more silver bullion
on the market at 20 cents in the dol
lor for English speculation at tn
expense of the American farmer
Nobody wants, or intends to have
an ounce of silver in dollar, and i
is nonsense to argue that the Chicag
platform means anything OF tn
kind; our coined dollars of 37li grain
goes for 100 cents and not 20 cents.
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Million EriandR