The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-06-04
FREE SILVER
Must Be the Battle Cry OF
RepubIicanism,
Says VIM. Higgins, Ex-Secretary
of State.
HIGGINS is SHREWD.
Ninety Per Cent of the Kansas
People
Are For Free Silver Says Mr..
e3Iiggins,
Therefore 1t Must Go Into the
HIGGINS is sHREWD.
Therefore 1t Must Go Into the
Republican Platform.

Fx-Secretary of State William Higgins
has been listening with the ear Of a
trained politician to what the masses OF
the people are saying, and he has heard
enough TO convince him that Kansas IS
overwhelmingly for the free coinage OF
American silver.
Mr. Higgins is to be one of the most
prominent men in the coming Republican
state convention. He is always one of
the best informed men on Kansas Repub-
lican politics. He arrived in town yes
terday and.is at the Copeland dressed IN
a new suit of clothes
To a STATE Journal reporter Mr..
Higgins said: "Free silver is to be the
key note of this convention This Is the
issue upon which the Republicans OF
Kansas, with a good ticket can march TO
victory. For the last five months L have
been making a study of this financial ques-
tion and l know what am talking about
l know as many farmers as any other
man in the state and | am convinced
that 80 per cent of the farmers of Kansas
are in favor of free silver-Amerlcan
silver at the ratio of 16 to 1. L have been
writing letters to my friends over the
state and they all tell me they are for
free silver.
tom Reed and Henry Cabot Lodge
are already travelling the right road 1t
and eastern newspapers will howl if
Kans Republicans stand for free silver,
D.. VIII u do we care about the eastr We
mus taNe care of our ourselves, and this
convention is going to adopt platform
we can all stand on. There lis no sense
in sticking any longer to the Capitals
gold ideas when all the people are OPP
posed to that policy
ssIf we have free silver plank in our
platform we can hold all the votes we
II
sands of others who left the party before.
at is not only the farmers who are
anxious for free silver, but the people in
the towns are catching on to that idea;
even the bankers, some OF them, are for
free silver. The two things the people
believe in are free silver and d high
protective tariff. If we build a plat
form with those principles in the front,
aud leave out the unnecessary trash, we
with good ticket sweep the state.
''In regard to prohibition. Well per-
sonally you know what l think about
prohibition, but that will have to be set
tied in the convention, and / believe it
will be settled without fight. and that
prohibition will not be mentioned The
Populists won't say anything about either
prohibition or suffrage. l believe that
the suffrage amendment is going to carry,
but it should not be made a party issue
by putting it in the platform. That's
what's the matter with prohibition; it has
been killed by making it a political
issue.
Il have been keeping tab on the Pop
ulist county conventions, and of all their
conventions held last week, as many as
seventy refused TO endorse the plan of
putting a suffrage plank in their plat
form.
IF we put in free silver and high pro-
tective tariff planks, aud say nothing
about prohibition and suffrage, we will
steal all the Populist's thunder. Their
voters don't care anything about this
howl about the state house gang and
machine. They understand that their
state officers must obey the law, and all
their actions must be in accord with some
specific law.
-"Outside of the fight on resolutions
and platform the principal fight in the
convention will he on chairman, AID on
the nomination of congressman at large,
secretary of state, auditor and lieutenant
governor.
"A. w. Smith wants to be chairman of
the convention, and some of Morrilrs
friends would like to see him have it.
but Joe Ady wants Peters to be chair
man and that brings the senatorial fight
into the convention. l am inclined to
think someone outside will be chairman:
as since coming here and even before /
arrived i have been hearing very strong
sentiment expressed against allowing the
senatorial fight to enter the state conven-
ton"
In regard to the chairmanship of the
state central committee Mr.. Higgins said:
Jim Simpson wants the chairmans hip
again as sort of a vindication but he
will hardly get it. Cy Leland don't want
1t himself this time on account of busi-
ness reasons, but he would like to have it
given To Bill Sterne. Ii is a little too
early yet to say where it will 90.
In regard TO the contest for congress
man at-large, am inclined to think the
chances are between Dick Blue and Ed
Greer. George Douglass is going to have
more strength than he has been credited
with, but he will hardly get the nomina-
tlon. The people don't want to make the
Kind of Campaign the nomination of
douglass would necessitate; they want
10 60 before the people with free silver
as the issue this year"
THE DELEGATES COMING.