Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-09-12
THE GREAT QUESTION.
The jefferson City Democratic
Club Seek Light on Silver.
Xney Purpose Hearing Both Sides. and
Judge shackleford, of BoonvIue
Opens the Baltic Be Fol-
lowed by Ex-Gov. Francis.


both sides of the money question. At
recent meeting committee was ap-
pointed to secure prominent speakers,
representing the sound money" and
the free silver ideas. Judge d. W.
Shackleford. of Boonville, opened the
mill the other night with free silver
speech. and he will be followed later
on by ex-Gov. Francis. Judge Shackle-
lord was greeted with a large audi
ence, and his speech was well received.
He said:
Mr. PRESIDENT AND GENrLENEN-I
am deeply grateful for the honor of
having been invited to address you to-
night 1t affords me peculiar pleasure
that come asa democrat to speak I'M
der the auspices of a democratic club
in defense of the principles so lately
promulgated by the Missouri democ-
racy. In this connection it may not
be inappropriate for me to say that
the Pertle Springs convention was
regularly called and duly constituted:
that 1t was as representative body of
men as ever assembled upon any occa-
sion. and that its acts and utterances
were the acts and utterances of the
party Much has been lately written
and spoken concerning the increase of
the state committee. Prominent men
have urged the old committee to re-
pudiate the action of the convention
and ignore the new members. Such n
course would be in the highest degree
revolutionary, and no democrat can
engage in it without subjecting him
self to the suspicion that he would
rather destroy his party than have it
continue to be the advocate of free
coinage.
IF there are those who must forsake
the party unless they can be led into
the camp of John Sherman, they might
as well take their departure now.
Missouri democracy is for bimetallism.
MIR. Cleveland and all of the multi
farious horde whom he has appointed
to Office will never be able to break.her
away from her moorings Every body
knows that a majority of the demo
Gratis of Missouri are in favor Of free
coinage, and everybody knows just as
we'll that almost every member of the
old committee is strongly opposed TO
1t. What, then, could be mere
natural than that the convention
should deem it expedient to place
upon the committee at least some
who are in accord with the party upon
the paramount issue of the coming
campaign? What that convention did
must stand until another shall set it
aside l do not, however. deny that
any democrat has the right to use his
utmost endeavor to induce the next
convention to take such action and
adopt such platform as he may choose
to advocate. / am glad to notice that
our ''sound-money" friends have at last
concluded to quit sending out weekly
bulletins announcing the subsistence of
the silver craze and have commenced
TO argue their case.
THE people of this city few DAYS
ago listened to sound money lecture
from one whose well-founded reput;-
ton as an orator and statesman must
have secured for him the closest atten-
ton of all who were present When
his logical and eloquent tariff speeches
of former campaigns are recalled. there
is no bimetallist who does not deeply
regret that Mr.. Lehman is out of har-
mony with his party. and who does
not sincerely hope that at no distant
day he will see his error and return to
the house of his fathers. 1t can not
be regarded as otherwise than as I'M
fortunate that a democrat of such
transcendent ability should be found
upon the stump receiving the applause
of republicans and plutocrats for urg-
ing that his party's platform is con-
trary to the interests of the people, in
consistent with good government and
unworthy of the SURFACES of the
voters
MIR. Lehman saw proper to turn aside
from the subject Of his address to de-
liver a glowing eulogium upon Mr..
Cleveland and to belabor those of US
dents views upon the pending ques-
tion. / can not refrain from a few re-
marks in reply. / shall not be under
the necessity of calling in question
Mr.. Cleveland's honesty of purpose.
If he is honest, then the situation is
all the more lamentable. Saul of Tar
sus was dreadfully and fatally honest
and conscientious in his persecution of
Christians, but he tells US himself that
such persecution was none the less
barberous because conscientiously in
ficted.
Unlike Mr.. Lehman, / favored the
nomination of Mr.. Cleveland There
were many reasons why he should have
received that nomination. He was an
ardent tariff reformer, and the tariff
was the issue of that campaign. 1t
was thought, too, that the republican
party had been SO strengthened by the
money of the tariff barons that it could
not be defeated by the democratic
party alone A fusion between the
democrats and mugwumps was there
fore deemed advisable. The only way
such a fusion could be brought about
was BY nominating the great mug
wump chief, and It was done according
ly. He was known to be opposed to
silver coinage, but no one believed
that he would accept a nomination
and then, after his election, delibar-
ately trample it under foot The plat
form upon which he was elected de-
clared that both silver and gold should
be admitted to coinage without dis
elimination against either metal, yet
he has refused to permit the coinage
of a single dollar of silver. even veto
ing the bill for the free coinage of the
trifiing sum of the seigniorage.
"In the last campaign, when we were
making a losing fight, not a word did
he or any member of his cabinet utter
in behalf of the party to which they
owed their positions. Not only this.
but they did not even vote. They
would neither speak nor vote for their
hat