The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-06-04
DARE NOT IGNORE TT.

There is at least one bird less lone
some than during the weeks succeed
ing last falls elections, at which time
with such unanimity the papers and
politicians of the country were so con
fdently announcing that the silver
craze" was at last done for" 1t is
unnecessary TO direct attention to the
| emblematical cognOmen of the said
fowl or point out the region in which
it does its most effective Topping.
However, there is still persistent
! disposition Of assurance that there can
be but one issue before the country,
and that issue the tariff This in the
| face of the undeniable fact that pOliti-
! cal parties are going TO pieces over
silver, and that little else than silver
is talked of in congress, through the
newspapers or elsewhere, and the sit
uation becomes anomalous.
With every national political organ
iZation in the country, save the Repub-
Hcan party, pronouncing for silver,
with labor organizations demanding
sixteen 10 one and free, with the Re
publican party itself being threatened,
we find such papers as the New York
Tribune, the Mail and Express, and
other great Republican dailies of the
east persistently declaring that the
only issue before the country is one Of
tariff. The Mail and Express is vim
dictive in its denunciations Of currency
reform, designating it as "a form of
Democratic hypocrisy, perfdy and stu
pidity."
Such insistence is but blindness, will
full and self-chosen. Every loyal Re
publican recognizes the Importance of
the tariff question, but being in favor
of protection they cannot get away
from the idea of protecting silver as
well as other products. SO the money
question is not settled and will not be
until silver has met its Sedan or gold
its Waterloo. Should the Republican
party at st. Louis either ignore the sill
yer question or pronounce in favor of
the gold standard, that will not even
tend to settle the money question in
face of four other national conventions
making silver their sole or prime issue.
Nc politician can be so dumb as not
TO see that with all the silver elements
Of the country uniting on a Chicago
silver platform, and with such a man
as Teller for a nominee, that there
would be trouble ahead for the Re
publican party. To say therefore that
the money question is settled or that |
it is not an issue is foolishly absurd. |
While it is true that only eight straight |
state Republican conventions have de- |
ciared for silver, yet it is equally true |
that there are Republicans in every |
township, ward and county in the /
United States who are for free silver |
16 TO 1. If the Republican leaders |
either lose sight Of or ignore this fact
it will be at the expense of votes in
the electoral college. Last month the
Republicans of Oregon declared for the
gold standard, and the dispatches in J
yesterday mornings Eagle contained
the information that the Republican
nominee for congress III that Republi-
can state were probably defeated.
The time for pooh-poohing is past,
and the papers named, as will Wall
street, be forced to admit, before No
vember next, that the great issue is
the silver issue, and that the Republi-
can party viii have made a fatal mis-
take if it should ignore that fact at
the ST. Louis convention.