The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1896-07-21
The Great Issue Of the Campaign.
"A CLEAR OUTLINE BY BRYAN
An American System OF Finance
Denanded-Parties are Made for
the People

An American System of Finance
Demanded-Parties are Made for
the People
Mr.. VIM. j. Bryan, the Democratic
nominee for President was given a
public reception at the city park in
Centralia, ILL.,, and in response TO calls
upon him by the large crowd he spoke
as follows:
I'VE are entering upon memorable
campaign, and the issues are being
drawn for the contest. The two parties,
described as the two great parties, the
two leading parties, have already
adopted their platforms and have al
ready named their candidates for Pres
ident and Vice President, and in q
short time the campaign will be opened
fully, and you will be making up your
minds us to which platform and as to
which ticket you will support trust
the issues involved in this campaign
will be clearly und orstood and carefully
studied. Parties are not made to be
worshipped; they are merely the in
struments by which we serve our
country. People are not made for
parties, but the parties are made for
the people, and the parties can only
claim the support of the people when
these parties are efficient Instruments
in the hands of the people for accom-
pllshing good. And those who are
called upon to vote have the right to
consider the platform utterances and
the policies advocated by the various
parties as well as the candidates who
are nominated.
In this campaign | believe there will
be less of personalities and more Of
principle than in any campaign which
we have seen in recent years. The
people have before them two great
public questions. We must not expect
that any platform will contain all you
desire. No thinking person finds in
any platform an expression of every
thing which he believes, nor must you
expect that any platform will be free
from some objection. We select our
party; we select our platform; not in
the hope of finding something which
is absolutely in accord with our opinion,
but we take that platform which for
the time being promises to us the best
legislation on the most important ques-
tiOns. And in this campaign 1T is
decided by all sides that the most
important issue is the money question.
1t matters not wheJher you believe in
the restoration OF silver or in the gold
standard, you must admit that the set
tiement OF the money question is OF the
first and greatest Importance, one that
when settled leaves nothing else to be
considered. On the money question,
the two great parties have taken posi-
tions directly opposite to each other.
-Four years ago the position taken by
the Republican and Democratic parties
| were almost Identical. The Republi-
can party said the American people
| are in favor Of bi-metallism and the
Democratic party were heading to the
use OF both gold and silver as standard
| money for the country and to the coin
age of both for money. Thus you see
that both parties declared in favor OF
gold and silver as the money OF our
country. Four years have passed since
that platform was written and these
four years have been full of monentous
| happenings, but as this campaign ap.
| prOachcs the great parties lined them.
selves up for the fray.
Upon this question the party at ST
Louis declared for the maintenance OF
the gold standard, but that platform
does not say that the gold standard is
n good thing, because that platform
pledges the party to get rid OF the gold
standard, but declared that this change
cannot be made except by international
| dBFeemeHG, uuJll Iue lcdulnB nations Ol
the world should help. The Demo
cratic party met at Chicago and il
adopted the platform which is in direct
opposition to the platform adopted al
ST. Louis. The ST. Louis Convention
declared for the gold standard until
something else could be done in the
near future. But more than that the Re
publicansplatform does not promise any
complete monetary system. The Dem
ocratic party outlined what it desired
to have done, and declared that the
silver dollar should be of legal tender
for all debts, public and private, an(
that such legislation should be enacted
as Is necessary to the restoration of the
unlimited coinage of silver and gold a
the present legal ratio Of a6 to l, with
out waiting for the aid Of any otheI
nation. We also declared that the
silver dollar be legal tender for al
debts, public and private, and tha
such legislation should he enacted a.
is necessary to prevent for the futur,
the demonstration of any legal money
The platform declared that the gov
ernment should exercise the right t.
redeem its obligations inI either gol'
or silver. A. N
The issue is drawn ana qe. h0s.,e,,,