Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1896-04-30
now THE Two PARTIES STAND.

now THE TWO PARTIES STAND.
The Cincinnati Commercial Gazette
saws the Republicans are "lining up for
the great struggle which Is pending on
the currency question or silver problem.
Some OF the declarations are worthy Of
note. Here is what the Maryland Re
puhlicaus say:
eve believe I'm the gold standard upon
which 20 base our circulating medium, and
are opposed 90 free and unlimited Colnage
of silver until am international agreement
OF the important commercial countries
of the world shall siye silver a larger
use"
And here is what the Republicans Of
Tennessee say:
1--WE are unaiteraby opposed to any
scheme that VIII give 90 this country O.
deprecated and dcbascd currency. We
favor the use OF silver as currency but
20 the extent only that its parity with
gold viii Doe maintained. and in conse-
quence are opposed TO a free and unlimit-
cd and independent coinage Of silver az
"a ratio Of 10 20 /. We believe that every
American dollar should be an honest leJ-
cent dollar, always and everywhere
The Connecticut Republicans declare as
follows:
1--WE arc unaltcrably opposed 20 the is
sue Of unsecured paper currency. either
by the government or the banks, the free
coinage Of silver 10 any ratio, and favor
a single standard of value. and that
stand IRA gold. We bel eve that this
protection policy. with a sound and
stable currency upon gold basis
viii furnish sufficient revenue 10
meet all requirements Of the govern
ment and properly support it,
The Pennsylvania Republicans make the
following unmistakable utterance:
"The Republican party has always
maintained the national honor and Gre
dit. 10 enforced the resumption Of specie
payments II kept faith as % every debt
created for the preservation Of the Union,
and has paid the greater part Of IL IN ac-
c0rdaucc with the spirit and letter Of the
laws under which il had been contracted
IL largely reduced the interest charges
uuOn the balance Of the debt by refund
ing al lower rates II substituted for the
nuCuating and inadcquately secured notes
Of the State banks q uniform national cur
rency Of stable value and Of equal purch1s-
ing and debt-paying power. Faithful TO
IT'S record believing that the people are
p
anxious 10 restore and preserve the indus
trial and commercial prosperity Of the
Union, the Republican party faVOrs inter
national bimetalllsm, and until that can
be established upon a secure basis OPP
poses the coinage Of silver except upon
government account and demands th.
maintenance Of the existing gold standard
of value
We give only a few Republican utter
ances. None Of these utterances surprise
MS. We have for months maintained that
the Middle States and the New England
States would be found practically on the
side Of sound money whenever the ques-
ton was presented TO them. Delaware and
Maryland may be added 10 the sound
money States. Thus the Republicans,
North and South. East and West. and
everywhere else, have made utterauces
enough to prove that in their national
convention they viii declare for sound
money and against the free coinage Of
silver at the ratio Of 1G to 1.
The next question is, What Is 10 be-
come of the Democratic party? Is that
party in a condition to declare for the
o.
VIII the Democratic National Convention
follow the lead Of the Republicans
win the St. Louis convention and the
Chicago convention be able 20 dispense
the clouds which now hang over the two
great parties Of the country? VIII either
Of those bodies be found deserving its
colors? We must answer this question in
the negative. Neither the Democrats nor
the Republicans as a party can be ex-
pected TO make utterances I'm their ma
tlonal conventions differing from those
which they will have made in the seye-
raj States. And here comes the cul de
sac-the blind alley.
Where is the man who can lead the
Democratic party out Of its present con-
diuoa?