The San Francisco call., 1896-10-13
Letters From the People,
ARE POPULISTS DISHONEST
Are Opponents Honest in Charging Them
With Dishonesta2

A4>A% u ~ SL40 i ~ Ox6x 4\<4 NA-A) .
Are Opponents Honest in Charging Them
Hith Dishonesty?
To the Editor of the San Francisco CdIl-sIR:
Lincoln won his way from opscurity to the
highest place OF honor among men and became
the typical American and statesman or our
century with simple, rugged honesty as his
rule OF life. His deep sincerity impressed it.
self upon all who met him on his way up step
by step until he at last stood in the pride OF
noble manhood on the mount of fame and
glory as en- honest man. "Honest Old Abe"
won the hearts of the people and they made
him President, and then they trusted him as
still honest all through that terrible ordeal
when the Nation itself was in peril. 1t was he
who said, relying upon the good sense and in
tegrity OF his countrymen when demagogues
sought to turn them HON him: sYou can fool
all OF the people some of the time, some OF the
people all the time, but not all OF the people
all of the time"
In 1857 l met "Abe" Lincoln as we then
called him, one evening in the ''barroom" OF q
tavern" In Bloomington, ILL.,, surr ounded by
group OF eager listeners. joined the group
as they stood about that plain, simple hearted
man. He was talking on human rights and
defending the rights of the negro as man.
was porn OF pro-slavery parentage and bred TO
hate abohtionists, but the pleading sincerity
OF those eyes, the. tenderness OF that earnest
voice, the beaming honesty of that homely
lace, the reasonableness OF every urgent word
ne sald, ere | was aware OF 1t had dtsarmed
before he said, in his off-hand way, ''Wen,
boys, must go to bed," was awed as never
| before with the majesty of rugged honesty,
with deep sense OF fair play, with ruling
purpose to seek the truth regardless OF results
to myself, and in good time became 'Lln-
coin" man and an abolitlonlst myself.
1t seems to me that miss in the present
campaign the Lincoln element OF rugged hon.
esty, OF manly fair play, of simple sincerity,
OF a ruling desire to get at the truth and state
q mr. md tn ficf no
convince the mind and enlist the whole man
to do battle for the right solely as the right,
and because the right should prevail for the
good OF all. both for those whose personal in
terests lead them to oppose 1t and for those
who defend it. read THE CALL every morn
Ing and try in fairness to. weigh the argu-
ments put forth in favor of the election of Nc
klnley and by Mckinley himself. and desire
to say word to tair-minded men, 1t being use
less to address mere blind par tlsans, as to why
l think 1HE CALL itself and the whole OF the
Republican orators are not doing the fair
thing by the Populists in charging them with
being repudiators and in favor OF dishonest
settlement OF the National debt We are all
American citizens and have a common inter-
est IN the welfare Of our country whether we
have political sense enough to see 1t or have
SO much party sense as not TO see it.
In the first place, if the free coinage of silver
would result in reputation and dishonesty,
as the Republfcans say it would, and say hard
Things about us for advocating 1t, what have
they to say about the concurrent resolution
introduced by Senator Matthews, afterward
Justice Matthews, which passed in the Senate
| by AZ ayes to 16 noes and In the House of Rep
| resentatives by 1S9 ayes to 70 noes, being
more than Gwo-thirds in both houses, Major
Mckinley. the Republican candidate for the
| Presidency, being one of the lS9 who voted
| for it? HPopullsts arerepudiators, as Repub-
licans charge every day, what can they say OF
| the Republican Congress and Major Mckinley
himself when they passed the Matthews con.
current resolution? Have the Republicans of
| 1896 forgotten this action of their party?
Let me remind them of it by quoting it here
| Tor their consideration: "Be it resolved by
| the Senate (the House of Representatives con-
| curing therein), that all the bonds issued or
| authorized to be issued under the acts of Con-
| gress (acts to strengthen the public credit, of
March 10, 1869, act 10 authorize the refundlng
| OF the National debt, of July IA, 1870 act for
| the resumption Of specie payments, of Janu-
! ary IA, 1870 are payable, principal and in
| terest, at the option of the Government of the
| United States, in silver dollars of the United
| States containing '41212 grains each OF stand
! ard silver; and that TO restore to its coinage
| SAID silver coins as legal tender in payment
| OF said bonds, principal and interest, is not in
violation of the pubic faith, nor in derogation
OF the rights of the public creditor"
You Will observe that there Is no proviSo of
any kind requiring such restoration to be ''by
International agreement of the leading COM
| mercial nations of the earth" but it is purely
Populistic independent National coinage act
and stated in more vigorous and explicit
words than in the PopuIist platform. Mark
these words: "And that to restore to its COIN
age said silver coins as a legal tender in pay
ment OF said bonds, principal and interest, is
not in violation OF the public faith, nor in
derogation OF the rights of the public creditor"
This is the law to-day, and the law is Just
and fair; as the Republican Congress said,
"it is not in violation OF the public faith, nor
in deTogation of the rights of the public cred
itor," or bondholder. In the light of this law
it seems to me that the charge of repudiation
made by Republicans against the Populists
and Mr. Bryan, their candidate for the Presi-
dency, is not honest, certainly not as Lincoln
understood honesty.
In the second place, fail to see how the
restoration OF silver TO its coinage by inter-
national agreement, ii that were possible when
the nations necessary to the agreement are stub
bornlY opposed 10 it, could change the character
of the act except to make it include all the lead
ing commercial nations of the earth, and thus
make "repudiation," If 1t be any such thing,
practically universal instead of confinfng 1t to
The United States. In this also it seems TO me
that the Republican party is not consistent,
fair and honest in charging Populists with
dishonesty and reputation.
AS young Republican, in 1860, Ifemember
country were against Lincoln, as they are
against Bryan in 1896, but the hearts of The
plain people turned to him as they seem now
TO turn to Bryan, who goes among them and
speaks their thoughts in the plain tongne they
understand, just as Lincoln did ID 1860. There
is a gloomy outlook for the Republic If the
people VINO look to Bryan as a second Lincoln
are indeed repudiators and given over to dis
honesty, for they are mostly native born
Americans, and include about half the popu-
country would be lost If the supporters of
Bryan are repudiators and dishonest, for the
miliionaires and corporations who oppose
Bryan are not noted for patriotism and
readiness to enter the ranks as soldiers in de-
tense OF their country.
JOSEPH AsBURY JOHNSON.
San Francisco, October IL, 1896.
e