Birmingham state herald., 1896-07-12

in 1878 that this was a struggle between the idle holders of idle capital and the struggling masses who produce the wealth and pay the taxes of the country, and, my friends, it is simply question that we shall decide. upon which side shall the democratic party fight? Upon the side of the idle holders of idle capital or upon the side of the struggling mass es? That is the question that the party must answer first, and then 1t must be answered by each individual hereafter. The sympathies of the democratic party s described by the platform are on the side of the struggling masses. who have ever been the foundation of the demo- cratic party. (Applause)
 Cities Depend Upon the Farms.
 There are two ideas of government. There are those who believe that if you just legislate to make the well-to do prosperous that their prosperity will leak through on those below. The democratic idea has been that if you legislate to make the masses prosperous their pros perity will find it's way up and through every class and rest upon 1t. (Applause.)
 You come to us and tell us that the great cities are in favor of the gold standard I tell you that the great cities rest upon these broad and fertile prairies. Burn down your cities and leave our farms, and your cities will spring up again as if by magic. But destroy our farms and the grass will grow in the streets of every city in this country. Loud applause)
 My friends, we shall declare that. this nation is able to legislate for its own people on every question, without wait ing for the aid or consent of any other nation on earth (applause), and upon that issue we expect to carry every sim gle state in the union. (Applause)
 l shall not islander the fair state of Massachusetts nor the state of New York by saying that when it's citizens are confronted with the proposition, Is this nation able to attend to it's own bus iness-I will not islander either one by saying that the people of those states will declare our helpless impotency as nation to attend to our own business. It Is the issue of 1776 over again. Our ancestors numbering 3,000,0O0 had the courage to declare their political inde- pendence of every other nation upon earth. Shall we, their descendants, when we have grown to 10000, 900, declare that we are less independent than our fore fathers? No, my friends, it will never be the Judgment of the people. There fore, we care not upon what lines the battle is fought. If they say bimetallism Is good, but we cannot have 1t till some nation helps us, we reply that instead of having a gold standard because England has, we shall restore bimetallism, and then let England have bimetallism be- cause the United States has. Applause)
 If they dare to come out and in the open defend the gold standard as good thing, we shall fight them to the utter most. having behind us the producing masses of this nation and the world, hay ing behind us the commercial interests and the laboring interests and all the toiling masses, we shall answer their de- mands for gold standard by saying to them you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not cruelty mankind upon cross of gold. (Great applause)