The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-10-07
A SAMPLE CONVERSION.


One of the amazing features of this
campaign is the rapidity of conversion
among men classed as politicians.
those who are in politics for what
there is in it for themselves. in all
parties. High and low. the statesman
whose fame extends to the nations
limits, and the fellow whose ambitions
are bounded by the ward he lives in.
nave Hoped with an ease and dexter
1ty that would make the lofty-ground-
tunoier or circus turn pale with
envy. We have seen silver standard
men become suddenly ardent advo-
Gates of the yellow one, and men who
nave labored for years to establish So
curely the gold standard turn with +ha
SILL Oh the wind, to urge the substi-
tuition of the white one. We have
seen Mr.. Mckinley suddenly button I'M
his mouth and keep it closed until in
formed from ST. Louis when tn omen
1t and what to emit, and we have seen
MN since emitting tide of yellow
talk.
Oh the other hand the moral senti-
ment of the country has been edifiad
ny Witnessing Democratic conventions
IN New York and elsewhere solemnly
declaring that the safety of the conn
try depended upon the stability of the
goid standard in April and Nav. and
just as seriously avowing in August
that rIIin f0
Increasingly unless silver is substi-
tuted for gold. The youth of the conn
Try, looking at political events and tba
action of leading men ror the lessons
by which to guide their future courco
nave seen not only these wonderful
conversions, but they have seen the
hldlng of men like Hill, doing tbe &c
trlch act in our politics, or the strad-
ding Of men. like Thatcher and sTin,"
smith, who try again the old and AL
ways futile trick Of sitting on two
Stools at once. Highly benefited all
these embryo citizens must be as thew
see all this going on, this f1oppine
Sinking, lodging, hiding, when a great
question, with a moral point. is tbrns+
into national politics.
why these men and thousands of
others thus shift and turn: whv like
Old Polonius, they solemnIy ayow one
moment that the cloud is like a camel
in shape, and, at the beck of some no
Htlcai Hamlet, in another declare it to
be very like whale" is very nicely
explained by little incident that han
pened down in a Kentucky congress
s1onal district, where one Black is nom
mated for representative In coneress
by what passes for Democracy in that
state. Prellminarily, as a first step,
ne wanted to go as a delegate to Chi
cago. One Culton was the boss of his
district. Culton was a sixteen-to-onar
and doubted Blacks loyalty to that
faith. So he wrote Black that he would
Ike to have Black go to Chicago, but
we don't know how you stand on the
silver question:" and wanted to have
information on that point Mr.. Black
replied automatically, avowing his
rrlendl1ness to silver, but adding that
the only difficulty have is to find the
ratio"
To this rather evasive and unsatis-
factory reply the boss wired Black this
message, which is worth reproducing
entire: Dear Sir: The rasho is IS 70
l. Ii you want to go as a delegate
you had better get the rasho and get
IL ID quick" To this came the i'm
mediate response: "Sir: 16 to |. Re-
spectfully, Black 1t is needless tn
say that Black went to Chicago and
that he is candidate for congress.
But in this little Kentucky incident one
hnds the answer to the enigma of
transformations, the explanation of
all this sudden abandonment of con-
victions and principles that has so
amused the country. diverted the heed
less and panied the serious. They want
ed to go to Chicago" or to congress. or
to be governor, or constable, or some
thing, and they were told by their boss
es, if they had not already seen 1t. that
they must "get the rasho'' before they
could get the other thing. And thew
wanted the other thing worse than
they wanted reputation, or Character.
or self-respect