The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-02-05

sue of bonds payable Ill So1u auu
third the surrender 10 corporations OF
the hover to issue all paper money
and give them monopoly OF that
function.
Senator Tillman referred to the
fisherman silver law in 1890 and in
this connection said ''The silver Re-
publicans of the West who had de.
serted the silver Democrats of the
South and accepted the compromise
offered by Senator Sherman, may
take warning as to what faith or trust
they can put in any utterances or &C.
tions of the Senator from Ohio as to
Legislation in regard to our finances.
The time for another Presidential elec-
ton approaches. They must under
stand that the election of any man to
the Presidency who would veto free
coinage bill means defeat. Ii means
more; il means Continued disaster 70
our industries and increased poverty
| to the masses of our people.
Under the sherman law, he contln-
ued there was a diminution of the
amount of free gold in gradual y
decreasing scale, but not enough to
cause any alarm. During the entire
wear of 1891 and the entire year 1892,
there was approximately as much gold
as there was during 1884 and 1885.
He said:
eff the secret history of the year
1892 shall ever be written, it will dis
close the fact, which cannot be proven
now, but of which I have not the
slightest doubt, that the gold ring of
New York, which embraces nearly all
the bankers in the Eastern and Mid
die States and the Stock gamblers of
Wall street, controlled the President
ial nominations of both the Democrtic
and Republican parties and had an
understanding with the managers, or
with both the candidates themselves,
in regard to what policy should be
pursued towards our finances. They
contribute money for the booming of
Mr.. Cleveland, as the only available
Democratic candidate. and they abused
and ridiculed every other Democratic
aspirant.
''There was plain evidence to show
that the President himself had weak
ened on the question of tariff reform
and the financial plank was cunning.
| ly drafted so as to satisfy both gold
and silver men with the intention that
| it would be interpreted, if Mr.. Cleve-
land was elected, as meaning the ces-
sation of silver coinage and the fore
| ing of a gold standard upon the peo.
pie. Interpreted according to the
plain use and meaning of the English
word, the platform means bi-metall-
ism, but there are conditions and am.
biguous phrases which have afforded
an excuse to the conscience of the
bull headed and self-idolatrous man
who holds the reins of power to pur-
sue the policy he has. Whether the
scheme was agreed to by the President
| in person or not, and whether he bound
himself in plain terms or not, will per-
haps, never be known. His course
has been answering in the absolute
contradiction of his public professions
and letter of acceptance. The expec-
tations and interests of the people
have been forgotten and ignored. The
party which elected him has been be-
trayed and its banners, which tloated
so triumphantly in the breeze of 1892,
now trail in the dust of defeat. The
practical destruction of the party has
been accomplished"
There had been no trouble with the
gold reserve, the Senator asserted,
and no hint of any loss of confidence
in the national credit, until about
the time of the last Presidential cleo
ton. Then, for the first time, we got
glimpse of the conspiracy which he
had referred to before. Mr.. Foster
gave the holders of greenbacks and
Treasury notes the option of having
government paper cashed in gold or
silver, and as they all demanded gold
the gold in the Treasury rapidly ran
down. The financial papers took up
the cry of the country going to sill
yer basis, and the first premonitory
breezes of the panic of 1898 swept over
the land and the conspirators foment-
ed it by every possible means.
Instead of endeavoring to stem the
tide of ruin and redeem the pledges
of the Democratic party, to give the
people relief, President Cleveland lent
aid and comfort to the conspirators by
his utterances and official actions in
continuing the policy of his predeces-
sor."
The Senator quoted from President
Cleveland's response to the committee
that notified him of his nomination the
last time, and declared there was
nothing in it to warrant one to expect
that the leader of the Democratic
party would ignore the platform and
treat with contempt thet rusted lieuten-
ants whom the people had sent to the
national capital to assist in shaping
legislation.
1.-THE language would lead us to ex
pect the very reverse. How many of
these reasonable expectations have
been met?
''How many of you men grown old
and gray in the service of the party
and of the nation, men who were the
trusted leaders before Cleveland was
ever heard of, how many, I say, have
been called into his councils2 If any
speak, shall be glad to hear them.
Where has this man sunk his person
ality9 Whom has he consulted2
Whose advice has he recognized?
None, but that of the bootlicks and
sycophants, who have crawled on
their knees for the crumbs of patron
age and betrayed their costituents for
the Office in his gift.
In the entire history of this coun-