The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-02-13

OF the bullheaded and self idolatrous man
who holds the reins Of power TO pursue 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 perhaps mover be known.
His course has been answering I'm the alb
soluto contradiction OF his public profes.
sions and letter Of acceptance. The expco'
tations and interests OF tho people have
boon forgotten md ignored. The party
which elected him has been betrayed, mt
its banners, which ilOatod so ~triumphantly
In the brcezes OF 1892, now trail in the
dust of disgrace and defeat. The practical
destruction Of tho party has boon accom-
plishod. AS a proof OF 1t, while the ma
tional convention Is only six months oil,
there Is no ono prominently mentioned AS
Its candidate for the presidency. No one
seems willing 10 offer himself as a vicari-
Gus sacrifice on the altar of a disgracod
and dishonored party. The Republicans,
who had been defeated by such an over
whelming vote at the last presidential
election, arc now in possession OF the Other
branch of congress by a majority unknown
10 our history, except during and immedi-
ately after the war. They are there not
because there has been al Increase In the
Republican vote, but because hundreds or
thousands Of disguised Democrats havo
staid at home and let the election go by
default.
There was no trouble with tho gold TO
serve and no hint OF any loss OF con fdenco
In the national credit until about the time
of tho presidential election. While tho
secretary of the treasury, Mr.. Foster, was
contemplating the probabilities OF n doflcit
A.. A. ..,.o,,,o tho rotIin0 of tho trpngnry
BY withdrawing gold did not begin until
after Cleveland's election.
There were Withdrawals Of gold In tho
regular order OF business, but the endless
chain had not begun to work.
Object Lesson OF 1903.
We then for the first time got a glimpse
of tho conspiracy Of which l have spoken.
Mr.. Foster gave the holders Of ~greonbaoks
and treasury notes tho option OF having gov
paper cashed In gold or silver, and
as they all demanded gold the gold in tho
treasury rapidly ran down. The financial
papers tool up tho cry of the country going
to q silver basis, and the first prcmonitory
breezes Of tho panic of 1898 swept over tho
land. While there were no reasonable
causes to produce distrust the conspirators
fomonted IL by every means possible and
ktU III nlOllOn tIO illttaAAiiiAf va nv INV
papers which they control TO terrorize tho
business interests of the country and make
ready for the "objeot lesson" which Mr..
Cleveland told us was coming. 1t was
expected by the confding Democracy that
the installation Of the new administration
would witness q change Of policy. Tho
trust In the president was very great, and
remembering how he had shipwrsoked tho
party In 1883 by his q~uixotic tariff mes
sage and tho emphatic Endorsement which
he had given TO the platform adopted at
Chicago the silver Democrats had reason
TO expect that he had learned some wis
dom, and that the government would ex-
ercise it's option to pay its obligations in
coin, either gold or silver, for its own pro-
lection.
The people by their votes had demanded
q change from the Republican policy. A
Democratic president gave them n change
for the worse by encouraging his moneyed
friends, who controlled the newspapers and
thus directed the current Of public opin-
Ion, to hurry up their operations of rob
berry by means Of the panic and to acceler-
ate the downward progress of the country.
We had fondly hoped for relief, and ev-
cry Democrat was supremacy happy.
/ came up here as governor of my state
and stood out In the cold around here on
East Capitol street for four hours, nearly
frozen TO death, To be present at the jolli-
Ication and Qualification upon the inaugu-
ration of u Democratic president with n
Democratic senate and Democratic house,
and God forgive me for being suoh.a fool
We, / say, we Democrats, had fondly
hoped for relief. We elected "a president TO
give tho people bread, and he gave them
only stones.
Now, here Is an extract from the address
of Mr.. Cleveland In response to the COM
mittee of notification:
Mr.. CuAIRNAN AND GENTLEaEN-The mes
sage you deliver from the national Democracy
arouses within me emotions which would be
well nigh overwhelming IL i did not recognize
here assembled the representatives OF a great
party who must share with me the RESPONSE
bility your mission invites. / find much relief
in tho reflection that / have been selected
merely
Merely
TO stand for tho principles and purposes &c
which my party is pledged, and for the enforce
ment and supremacy Of which all who have any
right to claim Democratic fellowship must
constantly and. persistently labor.
The President Arraigned.
Il Wultlltu " tlitS' "a
II he had evinced or shown any purpose OF
treachery l would have tried to deliver tho
vote Of South Carolina to some other man.
Therefore, feeling n personal grievance In
tho mans action, 1 am here today to ar
raign him before the American people for
his misdeeds and before the party for his
treachery and TO ask fora verdict.
There Is not one word here which would
warrant n TO expect that the leader OF
tho Democratic party, its head and guide,
would ignore the platform and treat with
contempt tho trusted lioutenapts whom
tho people had sent to the national capital
to assist in shaping the party policy. Tho
language would lead us TO expect tho very
reverse. How many of these reasonable
expectations have been motY How many
of you, men grown old and gray In tho
service of tho party and of the nation, men
who were Its trusted leaders before this
man from Buffalo was ever heard of-how
many, / say, have been called into hii
councilsS Speak II there be any here. ]
shall be glad TO hear thom. Where has this
man sunk his ~personalityS Whom has he
~consultedg Whom has he ~recognizeds