Evening star., 1895-05-31
BLACKBURN'S FIGHT
The Kentucky Senator Seems Conf
dent Of Winning.
EX-GOVERNOR McCREARY'S STAND
Arousing the Popular Meetings to
Enthusiasm.
STAND
WILL THE WAVE SUBSIDE?
Special From a STAFF Correspondent.

Blackburn appears to be more confident of
winning in the senatorial contest than any
Of his opponents. In the first place, he fully
expects the state convention to declare for
free silver, and that he as the first sena-
torfal candidate to espouse free silver, and,
In fact. the father of the present move
ment will derive prestige In the senatorial
contest from that connection. But in the
event of the convention straddling the
question he will still feel confident that
there is preponderance Of silver senti-
ment in the state and will rally it around
him. and go to the polls on that question
with the legislators
One-half of the state senate is composed
of hold-overs, and Senator Blackburn's
friends claim to have a majority of these
with which to begin the fight for the SEN
atorship. This is one of the strong cards
of the Blackburn suit, and will be played
early in the game.
So sure is Senator Blackburn that the
silver people will carry the state that he IS
making his whole fight on this line. He
and Gov. Brown will be laughed to scorn
by the Blackburn forces for presuming to
aspire to silver leadership.
Ex-Gov. McCrcnry Criticized.
He has scored some points over his ad-
versary, Representative McCreary, since it
was discovered. it is said. that Mr.. Nc
Creary has been trying to carry water on
both shoulders.
Il do not know that 1 could do him JUS
tice however honest my effort, to tell you
what his position is,' said Senator Black
burn, referring to Mr.. McCreary, for the
simple reason that after reading carefully
and perusfng and scanning his interviews,
l am unable to tell you what he is for. 1
am unable to tell you which side of the
ion, ha sa 4 f-l-
at fault in that. for I do not believe he
knows what he is in favor of any bet
ter than l do. l do not believe that
Gov; McCreary, and you and 1. and all
We were guided by omnipotent wisdom,
can tell which side of this controversy he
Is on. He says he is bimetallist, pro-
vided you will use one metal. He says
he Is In favor of the reconciliation of sill
yer, provided you don't remonetize it. He
says he is in favor of using both gold and
silver. providing you shall wait until the
balance of the world, and especially Great
Britain, shall give you her royal permis-
sion, and allow you to do it," This sum-
ming up of Mr.. McCreary's position"
which was made at a public gathering,
created a general laugh from those who
knew Mr.. McCreary. Senator Blackburn
does not want to leave the bars down for
Mr.. McCreary to slip into the silver camp,
in case the state goes that way.
Senator Blackburn pays warm tribute to
Gen. Buckner's open advocacy of sound
money, but injects drop of gall into the
compliment by adding that "he is an
avowed advocate of a single gold standard
and wants no reconciliation of silver"
Mr.. Blackburn thinks that to label a man
with gold tag at the present time in
Kentucky is equivalent to putting him on
the shelf.
Firing the Southern Heart.
Probably it would be interesting to hear
some of the arguments which Senator
Blackburn advances to his free silver au-
diences. He makes long speeches of that
ornate character peculiar to southern
oratory Of certain class, and generalizes
freely upon the financial question. Here is
an example of Senator Blackburn arousing
the multitude:
Your liberties are at stake. Translated
into plain English, the question upon which
you are to render this verdict means no
less than the reclamation or loss of the
liberties that belong to seventy millions of
free people. More than hundred years
ago by your own strong arms and stout
patriotic hearts you established as a people
your claim and your right to entrance into
the list of the free nations of the earth.
Upon the field of battle your ancestry did
not hesitate in proclaiming your right to
independence, to grapple the English lion,
the stoutest then as the strongest now of
all foreign powers, and wading through
the blood and carnage of seven long, weary
years of war they won that fight, they
emancipated the thirteen American colonies
from English dependence to the grandest
heritage ever bequeathed to mortal man,
the position of a free and Independent
power challenging the admiration of the
world in your effort to block out free
government for your descendants. They
won our independence for us then and the
question is today, will We surrender that
independence back to the British power
now. ApplauseD England tried to hold us
in subsection by the sword and failed.
10 on,,Il ,nf cd Nxyifh
powder and with ball, but after the lapse
of a hundred years she undertakes to con-
quer us by the more insidious, the more
cowardly. but the more dangerous method
by buying us with gold.' Applause)
sherman AS the BOEic Man.
A name frequantly used by the free silver
conjurers here to invoke the wrath of the
people against the opponents of free silver
is that of John Sherman. That name is a
fr ghtful, fearful bugaboo, hardly describ-
able. but typifying some hydra-headed
monster of financial policy always threat
ening the democracy. Senator Blackburn
never fails to ring in John Sherman's name,
and the crowd shudders. Here Is ver-
batim quotation:
mo man can deny my fairness when I
say l stand here today the humble apostle
of the Jeffersonian original democratic sys-
tenn of money in this country and opposing
the recent-day discovery of John Sherman
tuted (Applause) Between those two you
choose. I admit that those whose views
differ from mine are today filling this coun-
try with their loud clamorings, appealing
to the hallowed and well-nigh sainted
names of Jefferson and Jackson in support
of the heresy they preach. Protect us,
heaven, from such desecration! Jefferson's
rame conjured up to support Senator Sher-
mans system as a substitute for his own.
Jefferson's memory outraged and his shad-
ow subpoenaed as a witness to appear be-
fore the bar of public opinion in support of
the theory and the monetary system of the
man who proposes and who insists upon
turning over the financial affairs of this
country to the tender mercies of the banks.
Jefferson Is the man who told us that the
banks were more of menace to republi-
can institutions and civil liberty than was
standing army; Jefferson, the founder, the
man who laid the cornerstone upon which
was built the superstructure for free gov
ernment for free people"