Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1896-10-20
A MnRD WITII OMAHA.

| Il WORD WITH OMAHA.
Under this head the Denver News
recently served notice upon Omaha that
| the re election of David ii. Mercer and
the rejection of William Jennings Bryan
by the voters of this city will be re-
scented by the people of Colorado and
the silver states as declaration of
war upon their interests. and that from
| that hour on Omaha must forego their
support for the Transmissssippi eXposi-
| ton.
This threat can he viewed in only one
| light. 1t is IN insolcnt attempt TO cocrce
the voters of Omaha into retiring from
public service the man who has served
them in congress with signal ability
and fidelity, and upon whom they must
rely for getting the exposition APP
preparation through the house of rep
reScntatives. without dsparaginG
Judge Duties ability as a lawyer and
crediting him with the best of inten-
| tons, we venture TO assert that it would
take him ten years in congress to do
what Mercer has done in the last SEES
sion. Mr.. Bryan himself represented
this district two years without getting
n dollar voted for any public improve
ment, and the only appropriation he was
able to secure in his second term. with
4 democratic speaker and democratic
house, was for an elevator in the
| Lincoln postoilice.
1t is equally insolcnt for any one in
Colorado to try to swing a club over the
heads of the voters of this city by tell
ing them that unless they vote for Bryan
and free silver Colorado will refuse to
exhibit its minerals and products in the
proposed Transmississippi Exposition.
The Bee has shown no disposition to
drag this great enterprise into local
politics, but in view of the fact that
the supporters of Bryan and Duflie
are seeking to make capital out of the
speak without reserve on the subject
to the citizens of Omaha.
1t may as well be understood first as
last that there will be no exposition
held in the city of Omaha in the year
| 1898 If Bryan is elected president.
That much must be apparent to every
| rational person, whether he be demo
| crat. pOpulist or republican. With less
than nineteen months from the day of
election to the date set for opening the
exposition, it will tax the energies of
| the managers to the utmost to prepare
| the plans, select the grounds, erect the
necessary buildings and make provision
I f.,,. Il 81, ii
coded even by Bryan himself that his
election would be followed by a tenn
porary CONFUSION incidental to the rev
olution in our monetary system. 1t
would take months and maybe years
before business could adjust itself to
the new conditions. And nobody could
foretell what chan Ses would take place
in the cost of construction of buildings
and the price of machinery and other
appliances requisite to an exposition
of first magnitude. Nobody could
with any degree of safety, venture into
the undertaking without knowing what
sums will have to be raised and with
no probability of being able to increase
the stock subscriptions beyond those
| already secured. Whatever Missionaries
and enthusiasts may say, nobody who
has the slightest conception of the
business disturbance that must pre-
cede n change of money standard can
| fail TO understand that for the time
being, ut least, the Transmississippi
exposition would have to be abandoned.
Leaving out of consideration what
ever political preferences men may
| have, these facts stand out in bold re-
lief: The Transmssissippi exposition
cannot be held in the year 1898 unless
assurance is given by the election of
Mckinley that no change will be made
| in our monetary standard. Assume
| that the threat made i'm the name of
Colorado will be carried out, the choice
resolves itself into thls-between an
exposition without n Colorado exhibit
! and no exposition whatever.
For our part We do not believe the
Colorado paper has any right to speak
for Colorado. The people of Colorado
are intelligent and enterprising. They
| have never yet failed TO advertise
their resources when they have had n
chance to do so and they will not stand
in their own light in 1898 even IL dis.
| appointed In the election of president,
which they are sure TO be.
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