The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-07-15

agement OF an audience OF over is, 600
people, delivered an grafton which will
live in history. He had come to the
convention not as a delegate, but as
contestant for a seat in that body
and only the previous day had he been
admitted as member. The gold men
corcede that the admission Of the
silver contesting delegation from Ne
braska was just and consequently
Bryan did not occupy a tainted seat
He had not, before, been heard in the
councils of the convention. He was not
q member OF the committee on reSolu-
lions, but 1t was delegated to him to
close the debate in behalf Of the ma
Jority or silver report and he did it
so grandly that without campaign
headquarters, without claquers and
strikers, without brass bands and
marching clubs. it made him the NOM
1nee Of his party. He was the only
speaker in that memorable debate on
the platform who appeared to speak
entirely extenporaneous. Others had
notes for reference. and some read
their speeches outright. While Bryan's
effort had undoubtedly been carefully
prepared, he followed Senator Hill and
1nterWove SO much in reply to Hill,
that 1T gave the air of the whole effort
being spontaneous unprecedented
outburSt. The most striking passage
In his speech, to my mind, was in the
following words:
All. my friends, we say not one word
against those who live upon the Atlantic
coast; but those hardy pioneers who brave
all the dangers of the wilderness. who have
made the desert to blossom as the rose
tnose pioneers away out there, rearing their
children near to natures heart where they
can mingle their voices with the voices of
the birds-out there where they have erected
schooihouses for the education of their
young and churches where thew praise their
creator, and cemeteries where sleep the
ashes of their dead-are as deserving Of the
consideration of this party as any people In
this country.
II is for these that we speak. We do not
come as aggressors. Our war is not a war
OF conquest. We are fighting in the defense
OF our homes, our families and posterity
we have petitioned and our petitions have
peen Scorned. We have entreated and our
entreaties have been disregarded We have
Seggeo ana they have Knocked, and our ca
lamfty came.
we Deg no longer; we entreat no more; we
peution no more. We defy themi
no None Who was present will ever
forget the impassioned eloquence Of
the speaker as he exclaimed: I'VE beg
no longer; we entreat no more; we pc
tltlon no more. We defy them" That
defiance rang out in clarion tones
throughout the building like an electric
shock or thunderbolt and the audi
ehce almost TO man Sprang to its feet
anu ecnoed back the shout again and
again | can hear those ringing words
We defy Them as I write these lines
It was bold utterance boldly and We
hefnently delivered, and the earnest
ness or the speaker carried such force
tnat the utterance and the scene which
IolioWed Will never be forgotten nv
those who were fortunate enough to he
present. Like Fellows he concluded
poetlcally, and he uttered these closing
words with as much volume in his
voice, and Vigor in his gestieuIation as
when he began his effort:
Having behind us the commercial Interests
s anu lne iaooring interests and all the toiling
masses, we shall answer their demands for
soid standard by saying to them Won shall
HOT press down upon the brow of labor this
Liowh CT thorns. You shall not cruelty man
KIND on an cross of gold.
have never seen any assemblies of
people SO moved and swayed by an
orator The audience in the galleries.
oy large majority was unuuestion-
ably in sympathy with Hill. Hill had
preceded Bryan with a mastery argu-
ment, eloquently delivered. The gal
lerles had all through the convention
peen shouting for Hill, and when he
appeared, they endorsed his sentiments
by NOSE generous applause. But a
rev minutes later when Bryan had con-
cluded upon the opposite side. thew
joined In demonstration far superior
to that which they had extended Hill
The effect of Bryan's oratory was magi
cal, electrical People had lost sight of
the cause ne was advocat ting, but the
oratory had won a victory. and those
who were bitterly opposed to is to I
Joined heartily as the believers. in the
plaudits for the speaker. Corwin, Web
stef, Gay; Calhoun and none of the
great orators Of the past ever had such
an opportunity, or such an audience as
this while Ingersoll, Conkling. Gar
Held and other orators who have had
opportunities to feel the inspiration of
vast assemblages, were fairly ecIipsed
by the boy orator Of the Platte" No
stronger evidence of the force Of this
speech can be found than the fact that
as he stepped from the platform with
the words, you shall not cruelty man
kind on a cross of gold" reverberating
through the building, it was a foregone
conclusion that he was to be the nomi-
nee. Others had lahored, with the var
1ous methods known in political con-
test, for weeks and months to secure
the prize, but Bryan had spoken and it
was voluntarily placed In his hands
LESSONS OF THE PAST.
This convention and it's results form
the most remarkable episode which has
ever occurred in the political history of
the country and it will require more
than human wisdom to foresee the uIti-
mate results which will follow. 1t can
not be compared with anything which
ever preceded 1t in Our polictical his
tory. The Democratic party split in
1850 upon the moral question of slavery.
but in so splitting they gained no allies
from the Republicans. 1t was purely a
division among themselves and they
went to defeat in factions. In 1864 I
attended the most exciting Democratic
national convention In Chicago I have
ever seen. 1t demanded cessation
of hostilities and a convention of the
states to bring about peace. The coun-
try was sorely afflicted. In addition
to business paralysis no hamlet was
so small that 1T did not mourn it's dead,
and when that convention met in
Chicago, I have always believed that
there was a very strong sentiment in
the country that peace should be Sc
cured without further bloodshed Be
fore the November election, the great
October victories for the Union forces
changed the tide Of affairs, and the men
who assembled in Chicago were them
selves ashamed of their work. In IL,
the Democrats sought to avail them
selves Of the anti-Grant sentiment In
the Republican party and endorsed
Horace Greedy the Liberal Republican
nominee, going to dismal defeat.
THE FUTURE.
None Of these cases afford any
parallel to the present situation 1t is
true the Democratic party is divided
against itself, as in 1860, but there Is
now. as there was not then, forynid-
able revolt In the Republican party