The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-06-03

than against the party or its promises
as defined in the Chicago platform. II
would be quite as fair to place a per
petual stigma upon the Liberal, OF
Wing party, of England, because the
leadership of Horace Walpole had
conspired to make its administration
of British affairs of his time a syno-
nym for political corruption.
Besides, it cannot be held that Cleve-
lands administration has been in the
least corrupt. 1t may be claimed that
it has been entirely mistaken On its
management of finances. But there
really are two sides to the question,
and if he fears silver reconciliation,
it is because he fears that it would
invite ruinous liquidation of the
eight billions of our securities held
abroad, and a destruction of the tor-
rowing power of our people
Few people realize the vast extent
of this country and fewer still what it
means to move the enormous mass of
its seventy-f1ve millions of population
along line specific enough and prac-
teal enough to be embodied into law
and to be expressed through legisla-
ton
The Populists during the past dozen
years have agitated political formulate
that would represent every species of
government from the despotism of
Russia TO the duplication of the mil
lenium. Many of the causes of
discomfort lie far deeper than
the present financial agitation, in
which the reconciliation of sill
yer would be the first important
step in reform. but whose final
solution is beyond the power of analy-
sis.
The difference between Mr. CIeve-
+ lands and Mr.. Sherman's perceptions
of the finance question, and those of
the masses. IS that they can still pay
their debts and their share of the
taxes and the masses cannot. 1t is
upon the security of funded capital
on the one hand, and the fears of large
debtors on the other that the money
power depends upon to maintain the
status quo.
The organic differences in the COM
position of the old parties makes it
altogether likely that the work of re-
form will fall upon the Democratic
party. The south is wholly a section of
producers, upon whom the destruction
Of the values of products has fallen
with crushing weight. The west, also
producers, and originally Republican,
has changed either to Democratic or
Populist as refuge from financial
evils, which they had long out vainly
contended against within the Tines of
the Republican party. The southern
Democratic unit must impel the Demo-
cratic party on lines expressive of its
needs, the same as the eastern and
New England unit must jmpel the Re
publican party in a contrary direc-
ton, or to an indecision that would
prove equally fatal to it.
The irrepressible conflict must be
fought out upon the political lines
imposed by the mass of American pro-
ducers, and, in a general sense, these
are already Democratic, and unless
the movement proves to be merely a
temporary spasm Of discomfort, that
events might finally dissipate, the
side of reform will be taken by the
Democratic party because its very ex-
istence will depend upon it, and one
need only watch the course Of leading
Democrats of the west and south,
to see upon which party the
reconciliation of silver will lie, and
Mr.. Cleveland, in efforts to stop the
tide, will have about the same success
that old James Buchanan had when he
tried to reconcile the pro-slavery and
free soil Democrats in 1850. The lead
ers of either faction were compelled to
go respectively with the masses of
either section; and the result will not
differ because the sectional lines are
now defined by the Allegheny noun
tains instead of the Ohio river. The
thing we find lacking in the satire of
our correspondent is-patience.