Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1896-10-27
4 PRELATE'S COUNSEL
One of Americas Great Catholic
Leaders is Opposed to
Organism.
ARCHBISHOP iRELAND'S LETTER
The Chicago Platform Declared to
DO Threat Against So
cial Order
The letter of Archbishop Ireland, writ

The letter of Archbishop Ireland, writ
ten not as preiate, but in his private
capacity as a citizen, cannot fail to carry
weight with multitudes Of voters OF his
own faith and it is good reading Tor
everybody. He does not lay special
stress upon the financial plank OF the
Chicago platform. but upon its declara-
ton relating to the federal authority and
the integrity of the Supreme court. The
archbishop points ont in urniistakabie
language the revolutionary character OF
that platform. He says: THE move
tnent which had its expression in the
Chicago convention and which now seeks,
by means of popular suffrage, to en-
throne itself in the capital of the ma.
ton, is in it's logical effect against the
United States; 1t Is secession lie
quotes the frank announcement of arbi-
trary Interference by federal authorities
in local affairs and observes: I'm these
words there is the old secession doctrine
that states are independent of the ma
tional government at Washington; there
is the annulment of the Union: there Is
mott e served upon the flag of America
thaS outside of the District of Columbia
il is without power of self-assertion or
ef-defense.' And again, The plat
form of the Chicago convention threat
ems the country with destruction of social
order, with lawlessness and anarchy.
On the question of government by in
junction, the archbishop tells the people
of America that THE palladium OF
American liberties is the supreme court
Mt Washington, the counterpart OF
which In majesty and in power TO en-
force absolute justice, does not exist
amou;; the nations of christendom.
And nov convention speaks Of the SUI
prem court as il may be hereafter con-
stituted, intimating Enthusiastically the in
,ention, If the party represented in that
convention comes TO power to so constl-
tute the courts as TO make II insensiple
20 the stern voice of the law, and re-
spops,ys to the passing whims of politi-
60. parties"
The archbishop sees in the platform
sectional and guarded expression OF So
cialism. The convention of Chicago is
the international of Europe. now tax
Ing body in America. The war
of class against class is upon US, the war
of the proletariat against the property
holder. No other meaning than THIS can
ne given to the appeals to the common
people, TO labor, to the poor and down
troddep, and TO the denunciations
against piutocrats and corporations and
money grabbers and bankers. Many adj
herents of the movement do not per
ceive its full meaning; but let them be
ware, they are lighting torches which
horne in hands of reckless men, may
light up In the country the iurid nres OF
n commune.
Archbishop Ireland thinks that the
pamphlet of Archbishop Walsh of Dub
lin on bimetallsm 'has no bearing what
ever on the situation in America ant
that il SIS throughout a solid argumen
against the Chicago platform. Ere.
coinage. he says, will give Us none!
worth in the commercial market of tn
world, little over half its nomina
value. Legal tender com
pelling men to accept against their viii
money above its commercial value in IN
He is absolutely convinced that III
laborng classes will suffer the most o
all from free silver coinage" With re
speet to the farmer, he pertincntiy asks
will they not receive. higher pric
for their products. Maybe highe
price, but not higher value. OF wha
use is it to have dollar instead of
half dollar, if the dollar can purchas
10 more than the half dollar
The best market for tb
farmers's product is his own countr;
and If his own country is IMPOVERISHED
IL factories are closed, If laborers !
cities are penniless, the farmer will n
ceiye but little for his harvests." II
scorns the absurd explanation of our II
iustrial and financial troubles by refel
ring to the crime of 1873" and say
that 1T is the great fallacy of the do
gold standard" He thinks that ''undt
the silver standard we will have niue
harder times" and that zone of the chic
causes of hard times today is the agiti
ton for a radical change IN the currenc
of the country
Like all other men who think upo
this subject seriously, Archbishop Ir
land comes at last to consider the ethics
aspect of the question. and asks: us
honest 70 try TO pay debts with half Il
money which we received when we COZ
iracted them? That the gre;
American nation viii. as nation. d
clare 20 the world that il will now NAL
law compelling its creditors to be sa
isfied with half, or a little more, of Il
money they loaned to il, and go on recol
in the eyes of the world az broke
down, bankrupt. regulating nation, 1t
not possible to believe"
Holding these views, which are full
and carefully elaborated in this lettt
which is too long for reproduction hei
II is not surprising to hear him say:
stand by the platform and the preside
tial candidate of the Republican conye
tion at St. Louis l am opposed to t
platform and the presidential candida
of the Democratic convention ut Chic
co."
The following IRE the closing PAL
graphs of the archbishop's letter:
Here is the popular argument
favor of free silver coinage--we la
had hard times under the gold standa
That Is true, and what is also true
that under the silver standard we SD
have much harder times. Ii is the or,
fallacy of the day to be attributing q
hard times 10 the gold standard. I
craze of free silver as cure for ha
times is expiicabie on the same thee
that man who has been long ii
sick despite the attentive care OF exp
physicians. will call for any guack IS
adyertises to cure all the ills of
mainly. Hard times have come throu
tho severe aud resistless working
aconomic laws which go their way