The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-06-30

the Judgment OF an overwhelming naio iority
OF the party in these sections is in evidence
by the class of delegates who have been
chosen to represent it in the Chicago con-
vention. Not one of these men can now
disregard the known sentiment of those
who selected him without betraying the
trust confided to him, and not one of
them, in my judgment, will ever do so.
Mr.. Whitney is entirely wrong in as
suming that free-silver Democrats are for
saking the fundamental principles of
Democracy, or that what he terms sound
money Democrats are defending these
principles in their endeavor to commit
their party to gold monometallism. Until
the Republican party met in st. Louis a
few days since there was never line writ
ten in a National platform of either of the
great parties that justifies the claim that
the one or the other of these parties was
committed to that doctrine.
Over and over again the Democratic
party, in National Convention assem- bled,
has put itself on record in the clearest and
most comprehensive language possible to
use in favor of bimetallism, in favor of the
restoration of silver to its place in our
never for moment in the Congress of
the United States has majority or any
thing like q majority of the representa-
tives of that party wavered in its devotion
to the principle so clearly enumerated in
the party platforms. To assume now that
adherence to that principle is abandon
ment of an established doctrine of that
party is to defy history and ignore the
most plainly written of all its declarations
of policy. 1t is useless to claim that
tender of the good offices of the party TO
secure an international agreement for the
free coinage of silver is the fuIfillment of
its pledges so often made in this respect.
To the sincere believer in bimetallism
for the United States an effort of this
character is little if anything less than an
unqualified violation of sacred pledge by
a great political organization. If this is
all that Mr.. Whitney and those who think
with him can offer it will be vastly better
that they offer nothing. When Mr.. Whit
ney says that the maintenance of our
present gold standard is essential to the
preservation of our National credit and re-
demption of our public pledges he ignores
great truth of which he cannot be ig-
norant. He knows there is not single
obligation of this Nation ou tstanding to-
day that by its terms is payable in gold
alone, and he knows that right upon the
face of the great bulk of the bonds of the
Government it is written in substance that
they are payable in coin of the United
States of the standard weight and hneness
of its coins before silver was demonetized,
and that therefore by their own express
terms they are payable in our present sill
yer dollars, if the Government elects to so
pay them. 1t is since the most of
these obligations were issued that silver
has been demonetized; whereby, if they
are to be paid i'll gold alone, their
value has been doubled and the burden of
the great industrial class, who must pro-
vide for their payment, has been in
creased twofold. To talk about VIOLA
tion of National honor when no party in
the Nation has ever suggested its failure
in the least degree to meet every obliga-
ton it has assumed according to the
strict letter of the contract it made has,