The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-04-11
per month.
HAYES vetoed this Saving:

| Hayes vetoed this saying:
TT IS my firm conviction that. IL the
country IS to be benefited by a silver
! coinage, IL can be done only by the
issue OF silver dollars of fun value,
| which viii cefraud no man A cur
| relcy worth less than IL purports to be
worth VIII IN the end defraud not only
| creditors. but all who are engaged in
| legitimate business, and none more
| surely than those who are dependent
on their daily labor for their daily
bread"
Congress passed this BIand-Allison
act over the veto, and Mckinley, then
a young congressman, helped TO do it.
General Garfield did not get TO show
! his hand on the financial question as
three years and a half as president,
| Immediately succeeding Garfield, did
| In his letter accepting the nomination
for vice president he said:
''OGr paper currency IS now as good
as gold. and silver IS performing its
legitimate function for the purpose OF
change. The principles which should
of the currency are simple and clear.
There must be 10 dateriorated coin. TO
deprecated paper. and every dollar.
whether of metal or paper, should
stand the'test OF the worlds fixed stan
dard.''
Arthur threw the influence Of his ad-
ministration in favor of repeating the
Bland-Allison act. But he failed and
Mckinley was opposed to him
In 1884 Grover Cleveland, the great
joss of the Democratic party, came in.
He recommended in his first annual
message the immediate suspension of
the compulsory coinage Of silver dol
lars. Here again Mckinley was
against the gold standard.
In 1888 Harrison went in. Presi-
dents were no longer willing to make a
stand against the silver sentiment.
They did not have the popular backing
and they knew it. Harrison had come
from Indiana, a state favorable to sill
yer. He had been elected on a plat
form favoring bimetallsm, and when
in 1890 the silver men in congress at
tempted to put through free silver
bill, the gold standard men could not
get an utterance out of Ben Harrison
They were scared to death for fear he
would not veto it, and Senator Sher-
silver purchase act, as a compromise.
man in sheer desperation devised the
He makes this apology or it in his Rec
elections:
"a large majority Of the senate IA
vored free silver, and il was feared
that the small majority against it in
the other house might yield and agree
to 1t. The silence Of the president on
the matter gave rise to an apprehen-
sion that, if a free coinage bill should
pass both houses. he would not feel
at liberty to veto it. Some action had
TO be taken to prevent return to free
silver coinage, and the measure evolv-
ed was the best obtsinsble. voted
for it, but the day it became law
was ready to repeal it, If repeal could
be had without substituting in its
place absolute free coinage"
Up to this time Mckinley had al |
ways been in favor of silver. John |
Sherman could not bulge him. Hayes /
could not bulge him. Arthur could .
not bulge him. he knew that popular
demand was for restoration of silver
and he voted as he believed right.
He went out of congress in 1892 as
Cleveland became president. We all
know how Cleveland at once convened
the congress in special session and &C
complished the repeal Of the silyer-pu
chase act
Cleveland cannot be elected today.
No man on gold standard plank can
be elected today. The Democrats at
do not dare place a gold STAN
dard plank in their platform. The
great mass of Republicans will have no
to do so at St Louis. The
gold standard men will have no place
to vote, unless it is a slim bolt from
the Chicago convention.
This does not indicate that the silver
sentiment is dying out
But it does indicate that Mckinley,
the next Republican nominee for pres
ident is man who wants silver treated
honorably and justly and who will in
terpose no executive veto.
l