The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-09-08
DILEMMA OF THE SILVER REPUB-
LIClANS.

Our morning contemporary yesterday
discussed the local political situation.
1t spoke of the arrogance Of the NC
Kinley men towards what it terms the
Bryan Republicans, and how they had
seemingly closed the door to an ALI
ance at the beginning. That lifelong
Republicans, men who have never pro-
fessedi any other political faith since
the formation of the party, should feel
sore and outraged because these in con-
troll Of the party machinery would
drive them out of the party unless they
surrender their convictions on the
paramount issue of the campaign, con-
victious which they have been preach
ing for years as the true Republican
doctrine, is but natural. They have
remained true to the faith that was
in them. but their party betrayed them.
The Mckinley men are enforcing the
policy of the national party and they
are logical and consistent in doing it,
though they appear to be doing it in
an obnoxious and ungracious manner.
It has somewhat the appearance of
gloating.
Our contemporary then proceeds to
say that the natural alliance would be
that of all men in Utah who believe
that the swift restoration of silver is
so much the most important issue of
the year that all else should be subor-
dinated to it, but it is not at all con-
f1dent that this can be accomplished,
because" it says, 1.-The ambition TO
obtain certain offices is so great on
the part of a, few of the Democratic
leaders, that their idea of a fusion is
for silver Republicans to go to the polls
and vote the straight Democratic
ticket" 1t then says the fact that it
was the acts of Republicans in con-
gress and in the convention at st.
Louis which made it possible for the
Democratic party to even make a re-
spectacle fight this year, does not ap-
peal to Democrats.
We take it that what is said about
the acts of Republicans in congress
and in the ST. Louis convention max
ing it possible for the Democrats to
even make a respectable fight this
year. refers to the action of those
senators who held up the Dingley
bill and the action of Senators Teller,
Cannon and others in boiling the con-
vention. The actions of those senators
and boilers made it possible for the
silver Republicans TO say that there
were Republicans who were friendly
TO silver. Had the five senators who
held up" the Dingley bill and the
boilers not done as they did. where in
all this broad land could single Re |
publican, in public life or as a delegate /
TO the Republican national convention, /
have been found whose action the sill /
yer Republicans could have cited as
showing the least friendliness in the
party, through its official action, to
silver?
Our contemporary will not claim
that the merit of the silver cause is
in the party which espouses it, but in /
the cause itself. The St. Louis con-
vention declared against free silver;
the Chicago convention declared for it. 4
The action of the five senators and the +
boilers injured rather than aided the
Democrats because it gave the silver
Republicans a pretext, nothing more,
for adhering to their party, whereas if
the senators and boilers had not done
as they did, the silver Republicans
would have had no such pretext. If the !
contention of our contemporary is
right. then if there had been no hold
up of the Dingley bill, no boiling
from the st. Louis convention, then
the silver Republicans would all have
remained with the party, endorsing the
St Louis platform and voting for Nc
Kinley: in other words, party fealty
would have triumphedl over personal
convictions. The truth of the matter
is that our contemporary desires to be
loyal to the Republican party and to
silver at the same time, a thing that
cannot be done. Could it be done,
there would not be Mckinley Republi-
cans and Bryan Republicans.