Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1896-10-08
SHOULD BANKERS HANG?
BRYAN SMILES HIS APPROVAL
OF THE IDEA.
The Boy Orators Plan of Bullying the
Bankers in Endeavor to Scare the
Labor Vote-The Silver Party's Notif-
cation.

the SC0 lnSC., IN winch MI. Bryan was OIL
fcially informed of his nomination by
the National Silver party at st. Louis,
suggests several things that are worthy
of note in this campaign.
It was meeting of the Silver party.
1t was not a Democratic meeting, NOT
Popocratic meeting, not Populist meet
ing, but a silver meeting of the Silver
party to notify the silver candidate of his
nomination, on a platform that is nothing
but silver.
Mr.. Bryan says silver is the issue and
the only issue. He calls it the para
mount issue. If silver is the paramount
issue then the silver party is the para
mount party and this silver meeting may
be judged as the paramount meeting and
at this meeting the silver cause should
have touched it's highest point.
Mr.. Bryan was met at the 3. & Nj.
depot by a struggling crowd of about 500
people, some of whom followed him in
draggled procession through the streets
to his home. Not the business men of
Lincoln, not the business men of Oma-
ha, not the business men of any city in
the United States. No part of the bust
ness mind which the nation looks to for
the guidance and the maintenance of its
industrial and business energies was rep
resented in that parade or at the Motif
cation ceremonies which afterwards
took place.
Where are the business forces of this
country in this contest? Are they for
silver? If it is the paramount thing,
then the business men ought to have
been so notified, they should have been
represented here, and the idle people
who gathered at the depot and followed
the candidate through the streets would
know that this silver movement has the
confidence of someone who can and will
use it, when it is put into law, as a
means of restoring industry and giving
employment. If new yardstick had
been proposed by Mr. Bryan, and if a
new party had been organized on the
sole issue of this new yardstick, and if
this was the only issue of Importance,
if a revival of business depended solely
upon the adoption of this new yardstick,
then would it not be reasonable to sup
pose that the merchants and business
men who are expected to use this new
system would manifest their approval
of it in some way, and give the waiting
people some reason to hope that this new
system would be put into use after it
was put into law? If a new business
plan is proposed and put into law, which
the business forces of the country re-
jects as unsafe and impractical, then of
what use is this new plan? If the mer-
chant cannot and will not use the new
yardstick, then why have a new yard
stick? Mr. Bryan says we will compel
them to use it. Very well, if you pass a
law declaring that eighteen inches is a
yard when it is not a yard, but only
half yard, and if you compel the mer-
chant to use this new measure, then he
will change his price to suit the new
ness into as small a scope as possible
and wait until the new experiment has
spent it's force and is abolished. You
will simply confuse the merchant in
stead Or assisting him.
Mr.. Bryan smiled upon the small
crowd who gathered about him as he
moved along the streets of Lincoln, but
his smile took on pale and painful eX-
preston when he glanced at the win
dows and saw McKinleys picture every
where along the business streets And
not only along. the. business street, but
from the window of the nSuses. Not
that Lincoln people felt unfriendly to-
ward Mr.. Bryan because it was he, or
friendly toward Mr.. Mckinley because
it was he. but some how Lincoln people
feel that Mckinley and his plan of gov
eminent are safer. are more matured,
and have the confidence of the business
mind all over the nation. After all,
what will this new financial plan avail
if the men who are expected to use it in
business are afraid of it?
Every man in Lincoln, Omaha, Kansas
to engineer the labor industries in those
cities during the next four years is afraid
of Mr.. Bryan and his new silver dollar.
If the notification had been in either Of
those cities the business men would have
been absent from the parade just the
same as in Lincoln and McKinleys pic
ture would have been in the business
houses just the same. Mr.. Bryan gets
a great deal of sport out of the cam
paign shaking his fists at the banks and
IL Al M
who was the chief representative of the
silver party and who presented the
notification to Mr.. Bryan, shook his
fist in excited anger at the bankers and
said they ought to be hung to the tele-
graph poles. When Mr.. Groot said this,
Of him shook their fists also and said:
"That's right" While all this threaten
ing to hang the bankers and shaking of
fists was going on, Mr.. Bryan nodded
his head and smiled his approval. He
not only nodded and smiled. but when it
came his turn to speak, he shook his
fist also and the workingmen shouted
louder than ever at the prospect of hang
ing the bankers as a means of restoring
confidence and bringing back good times.
Mr. Bryan seemed to enjoy himself as
he looked out over the crowd and said
as many things as he could think of to
please the people and encourage his fol-
lowers all over the nation.
AS said before, Mr.. Bryan had exhib-
tied some symptoms of panic in his face
when he saw that the business men had
put McKinley's picture instead of his
picture in the windows. But when he
saw how the crowd cheered the prospect
of hanging a few of these bankers and
business men. it seemed to restore his
confidence. And then again, when he
himself stood up to address them and
one man shouted, ''Give it to 'em, Bill
ly!' and another shouted "You bet!''
he seemed to interpret this as a sign
that the workingmen were in the ma
jority and would elect him just the same
in spite of the business men. And so
he told them he had no fear of the oppo-
sition of the business men so long as
he saw so many of the brave and honest
toilers who were ready to reject the
advice of their employers and follow
him.
Mr.. Bryan knows it will be good
thing for him to get the labor vote, even
if he paralyzes industry in the attempt.
Some of the laboring men seem to think
it will be good thing for them also.
but just why they think SO is not very
clear. It may be just the thing for
Mr.. Bryan's candidacy to bully the
bankers and scare the business mind
of the country. It may be that scar
ing the men who employ labor is the way
TO get the labor vote. but lust WHY such