The Washington times., 1895-06-14
BLACKBURN AND The BIBLE
He Quotes Scripture as a Knock
down Argument for Silver.
Col. Bill Sterrett's Account of the
Genial Bluegrass Senator's Cam
paigning Methods.

Il have Just returned from Kentucky
said Col. William Green Sterrett. ken
lucky is my native land, and like to go
back there occasionally and talk over
public and private affairs with my old
friends. Finance is now the one engross-
ing topic, and the battle between those
giants of the forum. Carlisle and Black
burn, engages every eye and ear.
Blackburn has brought the discussion
of finance directly to biblical grounds
Blackburn says that finance is biblical
question.
Kentucky, which is the most religious
State in the Union, comedies with Black
burn in this view. Now every politician
is turning over the leaves OF scripture. To-
day in Kentucky the Bible is the campaign
handbook.
Blackburn, as youknow, is avery eloquent
man. l attended several of his meetings.
He begins all his speeches the same way.
Blackburn will get up and say:
'Mr. Chairman and fellow citizens, your
liberties are in danger.
'Of course, every Kentuckian gets ex-
cited at this. They are an ardent people,
Kentuckians are, and any suggestion that
thing they love, likeliberty, or adistilery,
or a horse, is in danger viii throw them
't4tS u iNhOIs uAH VIII ptOCCG+L.
. Yes, fellow citizens, you are ground be-
meath the heel of the despot and led in chains
before the throne of the tyrant gold
Now" continued Col Sterett, "if you
want to carry a Kentuckian to the point of
frenzy you have only to mention despot TO
him. Whenever you want to See a row, or
| feel a yearning to witness trouble, just
point out tyrant to a Kentucan. If there
is one thing the people Of Kentucky live for,
il is to do up despot, every time they
| meet him. Nero, or Caligula would not
! have stood as much show as a feather in
Gehemia, if they'd come to Kentucky.
blackburn knows this and SO he talks
! 'tyrants' and 'despots' to them and riles
them up. But about the Bible and its pres.
ent place in Kentucky politics.
when blackburn gets down to busi-
| ness in his speech he opens the scriptures
! and shows 'em that one of the patriarchs
bought cane and paid for it in silver
There says Blackburn, isn't the
| money of the Bible good enough for you?
Are we to depart from the plain precepts
OF Christianity at the behests OF Wan
! street? That old father in Israel bought
| land in Palestine and paid for it in silver
! 1000 years ago, and a money which
would buy real estate in the Holy Land
ought to be good enough to pay your in
| terest with to the money Ieeches OF the
| Bourse'
|
! yells like wolf. He is romantic and SEN
| timental a Kentuokian is; full of moss,
| and mockinghirds, and religious enthu-
| siasm and BiaCkburns allusion to the
| Bible fetChes him every time
| AFTER Blackburn has exhausted the
| story OF the patriarch and the cane sale
| be comes down to Judas and the thirty
| pieces OF silver
- / abhor Judas as you do Blackburn
| will say, but 1 ask you TO note that the
| transaction was on silver basis. If Judas
| in selling our Savior could take silver for
Him, it ought to he good enough for the
plutocrats and 10 per centers, who are
slowly eating out our hearts with their
| eXtortious'
ITS a fact" went on Cor sterrett,
| Blackburn had the gold bugs on the run.
| They couldn't stand the pace. When he
| pulled the Bible on EN-, he had them out on
a limb in moment But along comes
| pretty smart gold bug, who's been search
| ing the Scriptures, and he finds a place
| where the Good Book said
" Silver is dToss.
This was an upper-cut for Blackburn
| II would have floored him if a preacher
! hadn't explained from his pulpit that
| silver in the text was fieurative and
meant money, all kinds of money. Its
use in this connection could not be taken
! as an attack on silver specifically. This
! broke the force of what the silver people
would otherwise have found was hard
| jolt.
Just as I came away. however" ;" said
! Col Sterrett, "the gold orators had learned
! that the streets of Heaven were paved with
| gold.
- There they were crying, doesn't
that sound significant? Don't you sup
| pose that the Great Architect OF the uni-
! verse would use the best and richest metal
! To pave heaven with? If silver was better
or as good as gold, don't you suppose we'd
| hear something about it at this time as
paving material in the New Jerusalem?
| But you see how it is They paved the
! streets Of heaven with gold and we are
at liberty to infer that silver was re-
jected as not good enough for the pUr-
| pose
That's the way they were talking
when l left" concluded Col. Sterrett,
land this timely discovery Of gold as
| the favored paving material on high was
enabling the gold people TO half way hold
| their own against their silver foes -