The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1896-09-26
TAMMANY HALL
INITIATED AT ODD FELLOWS
HALL.


Silver Coinage, Shout for
Bryan, and Welcome His
Missionaries.
Circulars were distributed through Elkton
on Wednesday that Hon. William J. Ogden,
of Baltimore, and Hon. Mortimer Whitehead,
of New Jersey, national lecturer of the Pat
rons of Husbandry, would discuss the silver
question at Odd Fellows Hall in the evening
at n. m. At that hour the room was filed,
all the seats being occupied. A number of
Democrats occupied seats on the platform,
among them Ex-senator Johc S. Writ who,
after the band had played a tune, introduced
Mr.. Ogden rs the first speaker of the evening.
Mr.. Ogden is fluent and pleasant talier, who
readily showed that he was up" on his side
of the issue. Apart from the falaces of his
argument, the biggest blunder he made in
his speech was, that he did not stop when he
was done In we'll set phrases, he gave his
audience what any ardent silver advocate
would term an able and forcible speech. A
great deal he said was true, but much of his
argument fallacious. Under it all lay the
same tinge of demagogsm that generally dis
tinguishes radical silver addresses. Like Mr..
Bryan HIMSELF and all his free silver asso-
ciates, he laid down false premises and neces-
sarily drew false conclusions. For instance.
he attributed to the silver demonitzation
"crimoH Of 1878 as its sole cause. the de-
pressed condition Of our industries. in what
I, Ia, - /
onc-haf But he didn't tell his audience why
times were good from 1873 up to 1892. He
had the good grace however, not to charge
the act Of dcmonitization as done with Grim
ina intent, but it was no less so in its results
He denied the instability of silver as basis Of
our currency, and ridiculed its INSTRUMENTATION
in adopting silver mono-metalism. Now, in
the very pith and marrow of his silver inlla-
tion argument, Mr.. Ogden's speech was sadly
lacking Why. said he, the idea OF comparing
the currency circulation of this great nation
with that OF Mexico. which he's but forty mil
lions OF total circulation. Bring that silver to
the states. put it in circulation, and it
woulln'; be a drop in the bucket But Mr.
Ogden failed to tell his audience how those
forty millions of silver could be put in circu-
lation or distributed among the people. H."
knew that not one man in his audience coGld
get hold of one dollar of those millions Of
of silver or any other millions of it, whether
SO cent dollars or 100 cent dollars, unless he
worked for it, or produced something by his
hands or his brains to get that dollar. That
he might increase the per capita circulation
from s2l.5 which it is now, to S5l.00 which
it has been, and yet of this increased volume Of
currency in circulation, not one of the work
ing men or farmers of Cecil county, could
get one dollar, unless he grew the grain or did
the work to earn it.
The most interesting portion perhaps
Qocaly) of Mr.. Osien's speech was his de-
nunciation of the bond issuing system of the
present administration, by which 1862 900 900
have been added to our national debt during
MIR. Cleveland's term. Mr. Ogden handled
MIR. Cleveland in II gingerly sort of fashion.
He did not roughly set down on him. in the
Jersey fashion of Mr. Whitehead, when talk
ing to a Farmers Alliance or a Grange meet
ing. Mr. Ogden showed his fellow Democrats
of Cecil gentemanly consideration. He
spared their (teeltnks2) He didn't want to
mortify them or remind them Of their gross
Inconsistency, for he knew that nearly all of
the gentlemen on the platform with him, had
been in or about the Democratic Convention
Of this county in Elkton on May Goth last,
when they passed resolution unanimously
commenting Mr.. Cleveland and declared
that they were resolutely opposed to the free
coinage of silver, rs well as to all other
schemes or devices calculated to debase our
currency or cause our country to lose its ad-
vanced position among the commercial
nations OF the world. To any outsider. how
ever, who was in the same hall on May 26th,
and heard these good Cecil Democrats shout
and hurrah for Mr.. Cleveland and his bond
policy. uphold gold. ard denounce the free
silver scheme, it did look funny to see them
ap t,laud Bryan and free silver on Wednesday,
and nod approvingly to Ogden when he
prodded Cleveland under the fifth rib. for his
stern advocacy of sound money. Evidently
these good Cecil Democrats at Odd Fellows
Hall on Wednesday night had no further use
for Mr.. Cleveland and sound money. "Impe-
rial Caesar dead aud turned to clay, may
stopa chiali to keep the wind away but they
don't intend that any past admiration for Mr.
Cleveland shall stop their cl,inh now, even if
ii be only worth SO cents on the dollar.
Demnition take principle. "We prefer to
win with Bryan rather than lose with Glove
land on principle.'
That was the mir that pervaded Odd Fellows
Hall on Wednesday night.
AT the close of Mr.. Ogden's address, Mr.
Mortimer Whitehead, Of New Jersey was pre-
sented to the audience by Mr.. Writ. Mr.
Whitehead is an old stager on the platform,
who for years has been professional speaker.
earning his living by talking to popular
audiences. OF course when II man talks for
money he does the best he can. for the better
he talks the more money he gets. And Mr.
Whitehead throws into his speeches all the
tricks of the stage, and does It really so
naturally. that to look at him YOU would
think he actually believes all he SAYS. Fo-
instanr" be said he wns u Republican,. 4
Lincoln Republican! And he quoted M
Lincoln to suit. DaDbled in scripture n
little, cited n little law. repeated some OF
George Washinrtons farewell address, But
he only looked II Republican,. For after he
had talked little, beginning in that suucti-