The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-07-10
How foolish to insert that

I provision.
Still more foolish, he contended, was the
condemnation of the issue of bonds. That
meant the repeal of the resumption act
aud reputation. [Cheers.I The state
ment implied that not even Congress had
the power TO do this. The statement was
too broad; it must be a surprise to some
OF his Democratic friends in the Senate
who had introduced bills to authorize the
issue OF bonds for the Nicaragua canal and
other purposes Laughter and applause
de summarized the results which would
have followed If the President had not
made use OF the authority conferred upon
him and issued bonds. Speaking of the
deficit of fifty millions which had arisen
because tariff bill passed by the Demo
cratic party had not ''as YET (as he said
| with emphasis) yielded enough revenue
for the necessities OF the Government
This was foolish issue to have raised. 1t
I put the Democratic party on the defensive
in every school district in the country.
The burden imposed upon the Eastern
States by this silver plank was all they
| could reasonably be expected to carry
without imposing on them all the addi-
| tional issues. He did not believe in driy-
ing men out of the Democratic varty
/ lcheersl to make room for a lot of Re
/ pubhcans and Wings and Populists who
have never voted the Democratic ticket in
their lives. loud cheers.
81 tell you" he added impressiveIy, mo
matter who your candidate may be, with
one exception, your PopuIist friends will
nominate their own ticket and your forces
will be divided" loud applause.l
a voice back in the hall cried No"
Turning in that direction Mr.. Hill said
with bitter information: any friend says
| No. Then raising his voice TO its full
pitch, he asked: ''Who is there to speak
for the Populists in Democratic conven-
rlong' [Cheers, renewed again and
again
Senator Hill brought his speech to a
close by recapitulaTion Of the detects he
found in the platform, and said there was
still time to remedy them in part.
As he returned to his delegation he was
/ cheered as no other speaker bad been since
the opening of the convention. The dem
onstratiou over Senator Hill was at its
height when Senator Villas assembled the
platform to support his colleagues argu-
ment, and his appearance there was lost
sight of in the general confusion. Mr..
Hills progress to his place among the
New York delegation was series Of hand
shaking.
Even after the cheering had ceased it
was some time before order could be OBJ
tanned.
Mr.. Villas was applsuded as he was in
troduced. The reasons for the minority
were presented, he said, with . reeogni-
ton that they constituted a protest
against the proposed attempt at party
revolution. II the majority persisted in
its revolutionary methods they were sure
to meet fearful penalty. This platform
would not produce bimetallism. TWAS in
direct contrast to the platform of 1892,
which proposed honest bimetallism. l.
would shrink, not swell, our currency. The
1 silver dollar was no new thing to the
| United States: the scheme of silver mono
metallism was no new thing 70 the United
States. The Act OF 1884 was the real Demo
cratic measure; it was created under
Democratic leadership. That was dis
ard was now accused of responsibility for
all the prevailing evils, but it was never SO
credited when prices rose.''
"Would vou," he asked, s'stop the change
II prices. stop enterprise, prevent trans
| portation? Take from the farmer the
mower and reaping machine. wheat would
rise. Do such things as these and they
would soon relieve you of this curse of
| civilization"
Mr.. Villas told of the changes in wages
and prices during the decade just past.
! The foreign debt was pledged to be paid
! in gold, and for every foreign debtor
creditor would be iniured-one OF our own
I He -rofaafad %bo
/ ton that this was 3 nation of dishonest
debtors. [Applause.l In the language OF
| Lincoln, ''you may fool all the people
some of the time; you may fool some of
the people all the time, but you cannot
fool ali of the people all OF the time"
/ daughter and applause.
| He solemnly protested that should this
scheme ever win it would result in uni
versal distress; If It should ever come
bout it would result in direct calamity.
| If that calamity ever came, let Us remem-
Der who were its authors. He appealed to
/ the Southern Democrats to desist In their
attempt to bring about change in ciyiliza-
ton at which the whole world stands
| aghast.
! Cheers for Villas as he concluded were
intermingled with cries of Russell" and
Il the SA-OCNGInOF Ot MaSSGc0uSeItS was
given q hearty welcome as he began to
speak. The time had passed. he said, for
debate on the merits of this issue. He
was conscious, painfully conscious, that
the mind of this convention was not and
had not been open to conviction. He
knew that the policy which i1ggled down
rights and invaded the sovereignty of
States was to be rigidly enforced. But the
country, if not this convention. would
listen to the higher protest. [Cheers.l
He spoke. and he had right to SPEAK, for
the Democracy of his com monwealtn. He
had seen it in its darkest days following
the principles of Democracy with an abid-
ing faith, and they lived 10 see the day
when for three successive years they had
seen the banners of Democracy trium-
plant in Massachusetts over the cohorts
of Republican protection. This was on
great National issues. He did not believe
he should have lived to see the day when
three great principles would be forgotten
in a Democratic convention and they