The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-11-03
EX-GOVERNOR LUCE OF MICHIGAN

EX-GOVERNOR LUCE OF MICHIGAN
EX- Governor Luce, of Michigan, who
has voted the Republican ticket since
1856, and who has frequently been hon
ored by his party, declares that the single
gold standard means our ultimate finan-
cial ruin.
1t was the intention OF Ex-Governor
Luce, during the early part of the cam
paign, to make no fight on the nominee
or platform of the st. Louis convention.
Since that time, however, the fight be-
tween the two opposing parties has been
so bitter and protracted that in simple
justice to his own self respect he has been
obliged to come out in declaration
against the single gold standard.
In letter published in the Detroit
Tribune Ex-Governor Luce observes:
was in ut the birth of the Republican
party, and no man has adhered with more
constant fidelity to its principles and can
didates than ! have. have stood
squarely upon every declaration of prin-
ciples it has made until 1896, and in pre-
senting the claims and principles of the
party To my fellow citizens on 800 plat
forms, | have gloriiicd in the fact that the
agents of the Republicans party had re-
deemed every pledge made in its name
where the power had been given them.
emphasized this with especial satisfaction
when standing upon the financial plank
adopted by the State convention in 1891,
which reads as follows:
eve pledge the Republican party of
Michigan TO use every effort in its
power to restore silver to its historic posi-
tion in the United States as Il money
metal. We pledge this in the belief that
permanent prosperity will not be assured
or justice done until silver takes its place
side by side with gold as one of the TWO
great money metals of the world
believed in the platform OF '94' | be.
lieved with the convention ''that perma-
nent prosperity will not be assured or
justice done until silver takes its place
side by side with gold''
believing all this, as | did and do, the
| adoption of the St Louis platform forced
me to retire from active political work in
this campaign. | could not compel my
self to change front on this important
question.
The influence of such conservative and
fearless leader as Ex-Governor Luce is
worth hundreds of votes TO the cause of
bimctallism in Michigan. On account OF
| the sharp contest over the money question
in that State it may have the pivotal
| effect Of swinging Michigan into the
Democratic column.
The Chicago Records scheme to yet an
estimate Of the result of the election by a
postal ballot system proved a miserable
failure. Instead of hearing from 30, 000
votersin Chicago, only Sl,1S1 replies
were registered OF the 1871 900 postals
sent into the doubtful states, only 100,
49, or hardly third were returned.
! 1t would appear from this that the advice
of Democratic leaders for voters to ignore
The ballot system was very generally fol
lowed, and comparing the ballots return
ed with those kept back, it is easy to sec
that the result was decidedly favorable to
the friends of free coinage
To-day the great question Of WHO will
be President of the United States for the
next four years will be settled by fourteen
millions of American ireemen at the polls.
This is great country, surely, and the
people who make it so have every reason
to be proud of what they have accom-
plished Should they decide for the free
coinage of silver, rs in all likelihood the,
Will, it will be another evidence that the