New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-08-24
THE SAME BRYAN.

II IS always a tresome and usually an I'M
profitable task to follow the wanderings Of 4
vaCrant mind. But when the case Is that of q
candidate for President of the United States,
duty enjoins its performance. In the case of MIR.
Bryan one finds that he must reckon with some
thing worse than mere shallowness or ignorance.
1t would be easy enough to expose and dispose
of the fallaces of that portion of his speech
in this city which related to the effects
of unlimited silver coinage, as they have been
exposed hundreds of times in The past. but
everybody who knows Mr.. Bryan. and has lis
tened to or carefully read his previous utter
'nnces on that subject is justified in saying that
he did not and does not actually believe the
statements that he read in Madison Square Gar
den.
This may sound harsh. but 1t is true If Will
lam ]. BRYAN really believed that an act of Con-
gress authorizing free and unlimited coinage
would carry silver to par with gold at ratio
of 16 to l. he would probably be the last man
in the United States 10 advocate IT, His hopes,
desires. expectations, as we'll as his belief, are
in direct contradiction Of what he said on this
subject here last week. He regards the
preservation Of the equality between the gold
and silver coinage and currency as matter or
little or no consequence. In his speech before
the Chicago Convention, month ago, he de-
carcd, in terms, that there was more reason
for the friends Of sound money to say what they
would do I'm case of a failure 10 secure an inter-
national agreement than there IS for us 10
maintain the parity" In revising the speech
for campaign use Mr. Bryan changed the phrase
so as 10 read than there Is for us TO provide
against a failure to maintain parity which
change did not materially alter the meaning. 1t
is not necessary to go very far back 10 find from
Mr. Bryans own words deliberately uttered
and carefully revised by himself. what he is
driving at now when he so plainly intmaes that
the keeping Of all the coins and currency of the
United States on TN equality at the lawful ratio
Is matter Of little or no consequence.
Ever since his entrance into public life he
seems to have been ruled by the idea that his
personal ambition which Is az boundless as his
vanity, would be best served by arraylng sec
ton against section and what he vaguely calls
CLASSES" against other Glasses" 1t Is true that
In some Of his recent speeches he has claimed 10
represent and speak for the "tons masses
but all the same he meant certain "classcs.' so
called by him Until recently however, section
allsm has been uppermost in his thoughts and
utteranccs In Il speech which he delivered in
the House Of Representatives as late as Febru-
airy II. 1925. he boldly declared In favor Of an
alliance between the people Of the Western and
Southern States against the people of the East
ern States. who "are seeking to reap where they
did not SOW: who are seeking to collect that
ito which they are not entitled, and who favor
"spollatlon under the forms Of law This was
said Of people who. according TO Mr.. Bryan.
hold our bonds and our mortgages" He was
then. as he Is now a champion Of men who
wanted to get even by cheating their cred
itors. He has now opened on a wider stage as
the champion of those who would cheat the pub
lie as we'll as the private creditor. He is the
same Bryan. after al.