The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-09-24
TERRIBLE CRUSH OF PEOPLE
GREET THE GENTLEMAN
FROM THE PLATTE.
JUMPED ON NATIONAL DEMOCRATS
Ridiculed the Idea That They Were
Democrats Like Jefferson and
Jackson-Says Republican Plat
form Is Deceptive

authorities exceeded any outpouring of
the people on a similar occasion in the
history of the city. He spoke at the
Academy of Music, which has seating
capacity of 5000. Every available inch
of space in the house and on the stage
was occupied two hours before Mr..
Bryan arrived and experts estimated the
audience at fully 5000. Gathered in
the street outside of the academy were
fully $4,000 people, who stood patiently
until 1870, hoping to see or hear the
candidate. The crush was something
awful. Many of those who succeeded in
getting inside the academy had their
clothing almost torn from them. Many
cases of more or less severe injury were
reported, one man with n broken arm
being taken to the hospital. Hundreds
of policemen were powerless to keep the
great crowds III check.
Mr.. Bryan made his headquarters at
the Lafayette hotel, two blocks above
the academy, on Broad street. In front
of the hotel over 5000 people gathered,
DESTROYS of getting at least a glimpse of
the distinguished visitor. Since it was
impossible for Mr.. Bryan to make his
way down Broad street to the academy,
either on foot or in Il carriage, he was
conducted through the basement and
kitchen and out the rear to a side street,
through which he walked to the
academy. He managed to make his way
to the stage entrance and got inside after
an experience which he will long remem-
Der. When he appeared on the stage
his reception was tremendous, the cheer
ing lasting several minutes. lie said:
Mr.. Chairman, Ladies and Gentle
men-The gold standard papers ask why
L come to Pennsylvania. | have moth
ing to conceal. come first, if pos
sible, to secure the electoral vote of the
state of Pennsylvania. If you will not
give me that vote; if we are defeated in
this campaign, then 1 viii! come on an
other mission and that is to tell the
people of this state that the agitation
of free silver will never cease in this
country until the gold standard is
driven back to England.
'"They say the craze is dying out. |
care not what they call the silver cause;
you may apply to it such epithets as you
will not die because truth never dies.
(Applause) You ask me why ! know
that this cause is true. | can give you
many good reasons, but one reason is
Sutiicient-that every enemy OF good gov
eminent is against free silver. You can
know n cause, as you can know an in
dividual-by the company it keeps. Gap
! plause) Our cause appeals to the
masses of the people because the masses
fare interested in equal laws. Our cause
Z is opposed to those who want to oppose
our government for profit because we are
opposed to the government for such pur-
poses. Your city is called the City of
Brotherly Love. l come to proclaim to
you The gospel that is described by the
name of your city, and yet you say you
will give hundred thousand against
that doctrine. Cries of no, no, never.)
. l came to proclaim financial indepen--
dence in a city which saw the declara-
ton of independence more than hun
bred years ago. You say that this
city, in which the forefathers gathered
when they were willing to defy the for
eign powers and declare their indepen-
dence, you say this city is afraid to
have financial Independence. | shall not
declare that the descendants of our fore
fathers of q hundred years ago have
sunk so low, unless you write it so at
the ballot in November. (Applause)
The issue which is raised now was
raised before. There w,re people then
who said unless some foreign nation
would help us we were lost. There are
those who say it today and those who
say it today stand in the same position
as those who said it then. (Applause)
The people who hundred years ago de-
clared in favor of foreign supremacy
were the people who had business. deal
ings and acted as the agents OF the peo-
pie who employ them over there. You
have no banks in this city today which
are not controlled by the influence of
London, and | have no more respect Tor
the American who takes his patriotism
from Lombard street than | have for
the tory who took his patriotism a hun
bred years ago from England. Great
applause) One of the papers said that
/ lacked dignity. CA voice: You're all
right Another voice: How, about
Singerly?' Kisses and groans.)
"Frienls. | have been looking into the
matter and do you know that | would
rather have it said that | lacked dignity
than to have you say that | lacked back
bone to meet the. enemies of tins govern govern
ment who conspire against this nations
welfare in Wall street? Great ap-
plause.) What president did they ever
charge with lack of dignity? SCries OF
lincoln Great applause) Yes, my
friends, they said it of Lincoln and
Jackson, too. (Applause) Then JEFF
ferson lacked dignity, too. Now, my
friends, l tell you. how dignified a man
things. / believe that man ought to
be dignified enough, not too dignihed and
not lacking in dignity. Now, it might
be that L would have been called dig
nified if l would stay at home and have
people come to see me. But you knew
that l have said l was not going to
promise to give anybody an office and
therefore a great many people VINO
might want to see a candidate under
special circumstances would not come to
see me at all. (Applause) Now, my
friends, don't like to be lacking in any
of the essentials, but do you know | can
not see that there is any lack of dignity
shown if / go before the people and talk
to them and tell them what L stand for
and what | am opposed to.
They say l am begging for votes. |
never asked n man to vote for me.
have said that if there was anybody VINO
believed in the maintenance of gold,
said if anybody should believe, gold
standard was absolutely essential to the
welfare of the country he ought not to
vote for me at all. | do not want any
man to vote for me who objects to what
| expect to do if you elect me-, Now, M,
position on public questions is known ana
/ don't use the word sound money when
| mean gold, either. (Applause) And
Jon'f bonnst money when | mean