Mexico weekly ledger., 1896-09-24
A TRIBUTE TO MR.. BRYAN.
John n. Barker Addressed the Demo-
Gratis of WentzviIle, Mo.

M. Barker, OF Mexico, Mo-, spoke here
tonight to a large and enthusiastic
gathering of Democrats. The meet
ing was held under the auspices of the
Bryan Silver Club of this place. In
the course of his address Mr.. Barker
paid the following tribute to Mr.. Bry-
an:
"Now, who is this young Lochinvar
come out of the West? Well, he is
the fourth great leader of the people
nominated for President since the
death of Washington.
"First arose the great Jefferson,
cursed and abused by the Tories be-
cause he was the friend of humanity,
but he ransomed our people with iron.
"Second vas Andrew Jackson,
cursed and abused by the Tories be-
cause he drove the tiger to its jungle,
and he also drove the lion from our
shores.
"Third was the great Lincoln, the
friend of man, whose words of wis
dom and warning against existing
conditions will live while the language
OF Liberty is spoken.
"And fourth, our great comrade and
friend, William J.. Bryan, than whom
no mortal in civic life hhas reater
claim to our devotion and love.
"When our camp was full of traitors
in high places, and even some of our
trusted and faithful officers had al
most given up the battle for free coin
age in despair, and, in their hopeless
appeals to the brutal and tyrannical
majority in Congress were vainly at
tempting to win some concessions to
silver and honest money, even to
change its ratio, William Jennings
Bryan, with the eye of the prophet,
saw that that would be construed as a
partial surrender of the great cause,
and he stood solitary and alone for 16
to /.
ooh, the iron tongue of time was
striking the hours of destiny then.
The legislative bodies of Europe had
bowed the knee to the gold gamblers.
The great majority of our own Con-
gress had gone over bag and baggage
to the English and the Tories, and
those who were too noble and good to
turn traitor to their own land were all
discouraged and-sad. But the young
Nebraskafi stood alone like a defiant
rock in midocean, with the waves OF
avarice and hate beating upon his
grand manhood-some great sculptor
yet unborn will chisel him in heroic
granite-the Man of the West.
"And he was telling us his own
proud story when he told of victory
snatched from defeat. Napoleon sat
by his horse for hours, watching his
dying and staggering legions, while
hand in glove with death; over
towering numbers were wiping his
best brigades from the earth, and he
saw the proud eagles of France trail
ing their wings in the dust. He dash
ed across the field to a little drummer
boy, all covered with dust and smoke,
and ordered him to sound a retreat.
But the boy looked up in wonder
ment, and said: sOh, sire, Dessaix
never learned me the language of de-
feat, but I can sound a charge that
will wake the dead.' Then sound a
Charge said Napoleon. The drum
mel boy of Lodi sounded a charge,
and victory perched again on the ban
ners of France.
"And SO it is with the drummer boy
of the Platte. He is now sounding a
charge in this land from storm-beaten
Alaska to the ever restless waters of
the Gulf, and from A~tlantic's heaving
pillows to Pacific's gilded strand-a
charge that will wake the dead and
dying embers of a glorious and free
American manhood-free, free from
foreign nomination."