The weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1891-1894, 1893-06-16
THE WEEKLY TRIBUNE.
THE DEMOCRACY AND SILVER.
ID JUNE 10. 1893.

va thS
paper under the heading "Democrati
Hypocrisy" the Missoulian rises to re
mark:
The TRIBUNE is a democratic pape
and It is reasonable to suppose that tn
majority of its readers are democratic
The TRIBUNE's idea, we suppose, was t
show its readers that the cause of the de
pressed financial situation is the emit,
Of eastern bankers to silver. We vii
say that this is proved and pass on tc
the comment of THE TRIBUNE, which il
misleading in this much that it conveys
or tries to convey, the idea that when
congress convenes something will be
done for silver. Reading between the
lines The tribune says:
Just wait till congress meets and Gro
yer Cleveland, president of the United
States. the best friend silver has ever
had, and a democratic congress rebab.
ilitate silver, then good times will come.
Now. if that isn't what is intended to
be conveyed by the paragraph will The
tribune explain what 1t really does
mean: The TRIBUNE knows that Pres
ident Cleveland is an outspoken enemy
of silver. 1t knows that he claims that
the Sherman law is responsible for the
governments financial illness. 1t knows
that President Cleveland has secured
democratic votes for the repeal
of the Sherman law in a man
ner that has brought reproach
upon the high office he holds. 1t knows
that not only will the Sherman law be
repealed but that the president will en-
deavor to use his power with congress
men to force them to destroy silver as a
none metal. 1t well krows all this,
but has the audacity by skillfully weav-
ing comments of %silver's friends with a
hypocritical paragraph of its own to
make it appear that free coinage advo-
Gates may expect something from the
next congress-. 1t was Just such miser-
able pretense that carried the last cleo
ton for Cleveland. There is a limit to
the credulity If man. and that limit has
about been reached. The democratic
papers of the west, especially of Mon
tana. should remain silent on the silver
question.
The esteemed Muscular Is talking
through his hat. If he had read The
TRIBUNE sedulously during the last few
months he would have known that the
last accusation he could bring against
this paper on the silver question would
be a charge of hypocrisy. Times without
number this paper has declared it's unal-
terable conviction that silver must be re-
habilitated aud restored to the position
in the national money system TO which it
is entitled under the constitution before
this country can again know the pros
perity which it enjoyed under bi-metal-
ism prior to 1872.
1t is well known that the leaders Of
the republican and democratic parties
are almost without exception opposed
tooth and nail to any legislation looking
t. the restoration of silver. In this re-
spect there would seem to be no choice
so far as the masses Of the people are
concerned. There has been under both
parties In the recent past, and up to the
present, some egregious laundering and
some villainous %chicanery regarding the
financial management of the country,
and there will doubtless be a good
deal more of both before a Condi-
ton of affairs will be reached
which will satisfy the just demands of
the people.
We believe that Mr.. Cleveland is
wrong if he is demanding the repeal of
the Sherman act without having in view
d substitute for it which means practi-
cally free silver coinage. Apparently,
and so far as he has expressed his views,
Mr., Cleveland seems to be as badly be-
nighted IN the silver question as was
Mr.. Harrison, and in both cases. we are
constrained to believe that the bias
silver is "a result of looking too
steadily into the warping mirror Of Wall
street. At present Mr.. Cleveland is the
responsible man, and the country en-
pect, him to avoid the error Of his pre-
iecessor respecting the monetary ques-
ion. 1t expects him to see and under
stand, what is the indubitable fact, that
is no depreciation of silver. but
hat there is an appreciation of
gold which is a menace to
he prosperity Of all civilized nations to-
lay. IL looks to him as the first citizen
If the republic to be the first man to
discern the truth. lie is known to be
honest and bold enough to declare his
conviction when the time comes, no mat
to whose opinion or interest it may
un counter, but there is danger as
hirgs are constituted and from the fact
hat he has so poor an opportunity to eX
mine any save the Wall street view of
that his whole term may pass
Without the true light Of the silver day
upon him.
In that caseit isOur belief that neither
he democratic nor the republican party
will be returned to power in 1896, and
hat a political revolution will sweep
,yer the country which will carry every
hing before it. But We submit
hat it is still too early to
Judge Of Mr.. Cleveland's course on this