The herald., 1896-08-25
IN EANNA'S GRIP
products,

The cheap and unfourded sneers
which were leveled at Mr. Bryan's sin
cerity and disinterestedness primarily
| by Senator Thurston. and eagerly cop
! led by hungry opposition press, have
! been completely annihilated. Mr.. Bry-
| an has been candid enough to explain
/ his financial resources and to disclose
the contents of his private purse; furth-
ermore, he expresses his Willingness to
J furnish the Republican state committee
with a strict account of his income for
the past 6sw years, if their curiosity de-
! sires it.
1t is a matter for regrx that such
undlgnified methods of attack should
have been resorted to by the enemy, and it
was also very yshort-sishted stratagem
on their part. Mr.. Bryan has given the
straightest sort of explanation and the
most vigorous denial TO base and un-
founded charges. With no desire to re-
sort to the "tu quoque" style of repair
tee, one might well inquire into the ma
ture of the contract by which Mr.. Nc
Kinley was relieved of his heavy per-
sonal obligations. 1t is a fact that has
never been denied that Mr.. Mckinley
was capitalized at $11S,000, and that al!
the stock was quickly grabbed by Mark
Hanna & Co. Notes amounting to that
sum were taken up and filed away as
souvenirs of Hanna's extraordinary
friendship Presumably those notes
have not been destroyed and are still
held against the estate of Major William
Mckinley.
Would it not be in order, in the light
4 fnr
a list of those who financially assisted
Mr. Mckinley to be published by the
Chicago Times Herald, whose editor is
understood to have been the custodian
of the fund?
If one desired to bond a gold or silver
mine at s11S,OO0, trouble might be ex-
perienced in raising the wind, but the
syndicate seems to have snatched up
the entire Mckinley debt-purely from
motives of friendship-and still hold it
themselves 1t Was,of course, an op-
portunty that Wall street or the trusts
should not have neglected as possibly
profitable though extremely hazardous
investment.
Now. it should be plainly understood
that there is no reflection on Mr.. Nc
hlllel : DtISOlldl uOHtSlS Ilpl QOipl VI
his absolute integrity. Neither is im-
pugned in this matter. II is no dis
grace for man to fail in business, al
though it may be a serious reelection
on his business ability. But the que5-
ton asserts itself: Is not Mr.. Mckinley
under serious obligation to return his
friends. Hanna & Co, some kind of con-
sideration for the $11S,000 paid for his
convenience? Mir. Hanna is a hard
headed man of business; more than
that, he has proved himself remorse-
less and rigid master-he will have his
pound of flesh.
VIII Hanna not hold over Mr.. McKin-
ley's head, should he be elected, the
hypnotic influence which s11S,OOO has
over the minds of most men of business
as we'll as politicians?
OF course, no one expects this debt to
be paid at once in lump sum. 1t may
take four years to liquidate it, though
the present prospect warrants the
prophecy that it will never be liquidated
by the means proposed. But should Mr..
Mckinley be elected there will be sew
erai ambassadors for him to appoint to
foreign courts, a number of foreign
ministers and many consuls. besides
the most momentous consideration,
the restoration of the Mckinley bill,
which is to so enrich manufacturers
that they will gladly contribute to the
Mckinley relief fund and help to re-
store TO Hanna & Co. their share of the
$11S,Oo0.
In all good conscience, is it conducive
~ rN6,li
tics for a man to be elevated to the pres
idency who has been saved from bank
ruptcy by the money of so VIGOROUSLY
and sclf-confessedly corrupt politi-
clan as Mark Hanna?
Could Mr. Mckinley, if elected, be ex-
pected to ignore the obligations and re-
sst the demands which Mr.. Hanna
would make upon him?
Inasmuch as the Republican press
has been clamoring for Mr.. Bryan's
bank account, and he has answered
them concluslvely and explicitly, is it
not in order that Mr.. Mckinley should
respond by publishing the nature and
the terms OF his obligations to Mark
Hanna 6, Co?
The demand for an investigation is
general. The Chicago Chronicle, the
most influential gold-bug journal of the
west, makes the same charges against
the gold-bug nominee for president
The Chronicle in its issue of the 18th
inst. says:
The philanthropy which raised over
100000 10 save Major Mckinley from
bankruptcy was not disinterested. The
man who sincerely believes otherwise
is in danger Of the padded cell and
should consult d brain specialist.
The men VINO took up the collection
expected TO get value received for thei"
contributions, and they are the very
men Who are now and have been for
six months straining every nerve to-
ward the election of Mr.. Mckinley TO
the presidency. They want TO see the
color of their money again.
They are the men who expect to profit
at the expense of the people if McKin-
ley and Mckinleyism come into power
They are the men who dictated the orig
inal Mckinley bill, and who hope to die
tate another and a worse one when they
get control of the government.
They are the men whose collar Major
Mckinley wears. These are the men
upon whose bounty he has depended
for ten years. and whose will he will
execute should he enter the White
House.
Mr.. Bryan will take no notice of
Bourke Cockran's challenge, beyond the
courtesy Of a polite refusal He is per-
fectly willing to cross swords in debate