Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1895-06-14


that he was against It's coinage then as
he is against It now. There is nothing
left for us except to accept his dis
claiiner and denial Knowing him
as intimately and as well as
do, l do not hesitate for an
instant TO accept his disclaimer
am satisfied that that speech
was not silver speech, although
for seventeen years | was willing to
make oath that it was. am willing
to go farther, and If Mr.. Carlisle asked
me to do it | will believe; that is, / will
do my best in trying to believe, that
Carlisle never made that speech at ALL
Twill go farther still and | will strain
my best efforts in the direction OF be-
lieving that Carlisle never did make
any speech either in congress or out
OF it upon the silver question:; but
If he is successful in endeavoring
to explain away that speech,
and have no doubt he would like now
to obliterate it from the memories of
men and blot it out from the imperish-
able record of congress, but if he shall
ever succeed in doing, as he has en-
deavored to do, and as his friends APP
pear to think he has done, in explain
ing away that speech, and making
every man in this country believe that
1t was not free-silver speech, his task
is not yet accomplished; it is just be-
gun, there is still behind him another
stumbling block more difficult to over
come.
Some Votes In Congress.
You may possibly explain away
speech, but the hardest thing upon
this earth to explain is vote. This
speech was made on the 2lst day of
February, 1878, if my memory serves
me, but if l may trust my memory,
and upon that recollection defy con-
tradition, think If you will go back
and examine the unquestioned and un-
questionabl records, the official record
of congress itself, you will find that
am right in this remembrance. L
entered congress for the first time on
the 4th of March, 1875. Mr.. Carlisle,
came two years afterward, on the 4th
of March, 1877, day that for certain
reasons is remem bered as a black
Friday in the political calendar of the
American people. On that self-same
day, in the self-same hour, at the self
same moment that fraudulent claim
ant to the presidency of this country
took the oath of Office as chief execu-
tive, Heaven seemed to be kindly in its
purpose, and appeared to want to
make some sort of reparation to the
American people for the fraudulent
induction of Rutherfor B. Hayes into
the white house, and sent John G.
Carlisle for the first time to take his
seat as member of the American con-
gress. In that same year, on the 5th
day of November, 1877 three months
before he either did or did not
make the questionable speech of Feb
ruary, 1878, the imperishable and I'M
deniable record of congress shows that
he and sat side by side and voted for
the Bland free and unlimited silver
coinage bill that passed the house of
representatives by our votes
l should think he was free silver
man that day. If he was not, he was
giving the quecrest votes that gold
bug ever put on record since the world
began. (Applause.) That bill went to
the senate and congress adjourned
and we came home. On the first Mon
day of the following December, about
one month after he voted for Mr..
BANDS free silver bill, under the law
congress reassembled, and the senate
passed that bill that Carlisle and |
had helped put through the house. 1t |
put on an amendment which struck
cut that free silver clause and sent it
back to the house. I was opposed to |
It then because the clause had been
stricken out that gave the right to coin
silver metal, and so was Carlisle OPP
posed to it, and it was for the self-same
reason, and it was upon that bill as
amended by the senate that Carlisle
either did make or did not make the
speech of the 21st of FEBRUARY, 1878.
But that does not end the record yet.
If speeches can be explained away and
IL troublesome votes can be explained
away, there is another character of
evidence yet, and its commences will
not be impeached. If he was not
free silver man in 1878, he at least
spoke like one; If he was not free
silver man in 1877, he at least voted
like one; but whether he was, in 1877
or 1878, in favor of free silver, unless
he is most unfortunate man in the
expressions that he uses, not when
talking hurriedly in the excitement of
debate, as l am speaking now, but
when in the quiet of his own cham Der
he sat down deliberately and thought
fully to write letter. He wrote a
letter. In 1878 we passed what il
known as the Bland-Allison bill That
was silver coinage bill, and the Sec
rotary voted for it and so did l. But
it put limit upon the amount. 1t said
that any man that held silver bullion
should have it coined at the minis of
this country and stamped with the
American eagle as a dollar, but said
there should be no less than two nor
more than four million a month That
was the only limit the Bland-Allison