The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-11-01

In the white heat of the last days
of such campaign as this has been
all minor issues are fused and welded
about the great central thought in the
minds of the people. Conventions, ad-
vice cunningly worded, platforms and
orators range specious arguments at
tractively, but there never has been
and there never will be national cam
paign of false pretenses from begin
ming to end You cannot go before a
nation of several millions of people as
intelligent as any in the world and
have them fall in a three or four
months discussion, to get at the heart
of the matter. Our people have done
so. Therefore it is that there hangs
above the nation today a cloud of anx-
iety, which would be darker and more
threatening than it is but for the al
most universal conviction that the bat
tie has been already won, and that
our institutions are safe. For the TO-
cusing of all the light of this campaign
upon the issues at it's heart shows that
this is not a struggle between indi-
viduals or between parties or between
policies. The question which the
American people are to decide on Tues
day is Not whether they will elect one
mzn or another for president, but
whether they will maintain the form
of government that has lasted them
for a century, or change it for one
radically different. The polls are open
day after tomorrow morning, not to
tell the result of an election, but to an
nounce whether or not we are to have
r a revolution.
r7n This is the great dominant thought
before which all questions of policy
and procedure fall away. The free
coinage of silver, tremendous as would
be it's effect, is trifle to US as COM
pared with the substitution proposed
of a new form and instrument Of gov
eminent for that which we received
from the fathers and have preserved
until this day. There is no mistake
about this question now. In thousands
of speeches and through thousands of
public gatherings it has been pro-
claimed that the leaders Of the Bryan
lite party regard themselves as the
evangels of political gospel which we
call new because 1T is unknown to this
country, but which is really that Of the
first year Of the French revolution.
They have their free silver plank well
at the front, but it does not hide the
chasm underneath. Their ablest and
soberest leaders, when pressed to the
wall, will confess, as most Of them
have already done, that they do not
themselves believe in free silver as a
remedy or even practicable policy.
They say that free coinage at 16 to 1
is a doubtful measure and could not
do much to change existing conditions
If it could be carried through cit is
only the first STEP" they say, in a tone
which is full Of meaning. They look
far beyond the present and far beyond
any platform declarations that have
come to the notice of the people. "The
conditions are all wrong" they add,
"and we must change them" This is
what we justly call revolution. It is
not a remedy that the Bryanites pro-
pose to apply, it is sweeping away of
old institutions and the adoption of
new.
This is Swallowed forth clearly
enough in their platform and in the
fiery speeches which their leaders have
addressed to the people. No longer,
they say, must the central government
have power to enforce it's laws. No
matter what riot and anarchy may
exist within a commonwealth, the fed
eral authorities must not lift finger
to suppress it, although it nullify fed
eral statutes, If the local authorities
chance to be In sympathy with the
mob. The constitution itself, they de-
clare, must no longer be observed by
the law-making power. If the legis-
lature passes an act that is forbidden
by that great document and the SUI
prene court so decides then that court
must be reconstructed by the execu-
tive in conformity with the views Of
the legislature, so that the statute in
question may be declared constitu-
tional This is equivalent to sweep
ing away the entire organic law of
the land; for it is easy enough, when
plant supreme court shall have been
secured, to make the legislature para
mount and the constitution a nullity.