Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1896-09-11
THE PLATFORM.
STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES ON
WHICH THE PEOPLE WILL WIN.

Party of the PeoPie-A Plain and
Explicit Statement of its Princi-
pies.
We the Democrats of the United States
in national convention assembled do re-
affirm our allegiance to those great cS
>cntIal principles of Justice and liberty
upon which our institutions are founded,
and which the Democratic party has
advocated from Jcffersons time to our
own: Freedom OF speech, freedom of the
press, freedom OF conscience. the preser-
Walton Of personal rights, the equality of
all citizens before the law, and the faith
ful observance of constitutional linIita-
tons. During all these years the Demo-
cratic party has resisted the tendency of
selfish interests to the Capitalization of
governmental power and StcadfaStly
maintained the integrity of the dual
scheme of government as established
by the founders of this repub-
lie of republics. Under its guild
auce and teachings the great princi-
pie of local sclt-gUNernment has found its
best expressions III the maintenance OF
the rights OF the States and its assertion
of the necessity of combining the general
government to the exercise of the powers
granted by the constitution OF the United
States.
Recognizing that the money question is
paramount To all others at this time, we
invite attention to the fact that the Fed
eral constitution names silver and gold
together as the money metals of the
United States, and that the first coinage
law passed 10y congress under the con
stltutlon made the silver dollar the
monetary unit and admitted gold to free
coinage at a ratio based upon the silver
dollar unit. We declare that the act of
1873 demonetiZing silver without the
knowledge or approval ofthe American
people has resulted i'll the appreciation of
gold and Il corresponding tall i'll the
prices of commodities produced by the
people, heavy increase i'll the burden of
| taxation and of all debts, public and
private, the enrichment of the money
lending class at home and abroad, prostra-
ton OF industry and impoverlshinent Of
the people. We are unalterably opposed
to recommendation, which has locked
fast the prosperity of an Industrious peo-
pie i'll the paralysis OF hard times. Gold
mono-metallism is a British policy, and
its adoption has brought other nations
| into financial servitude to London. 1t $
not only un-American, but anti-Ameri-
can, and it can be fastened upon the
United States only by the sitting of that
spirit and love of liberty which pro-
| claimed our political Independence in
ZIG and won 1t i'll the war of the revolu-
| ton.
We demand the free and unlimited
coinage of both gold and silver AT the
present legal ratio of Ii to |, without
waiting for the aid or consent of any
other nation. We demand that the
| standard silver dollar shall he full
| legal tender, equally with gold, for all
debts, public and private, and we favor
| such legislation as will prevent the
demonstration of any Kind of legal
tender money 10y private contract.
We are opposed to the policy and prac-
| tice of Surrendering to the holders of OBJ
legations of the United States the option
reserved by law to the government of re-
| deem ny such obligations i'll silver.
| We are opposed to the issuing of in
| tereSt bearing bends of the United States
| in times of peace, and condemn the traf-
| Ticking with banking SyndicateS which in
| exchange tor bonds at an enormous profit
to themselves supply the Federal treas
ury with gold to maintain the policy of
| gold mono-metallisn.
Congress alone has the power to coin
| and issue money, and President Jackson
declared that this power could not be
delegated to corporations or individuals.
We therefore denounce the issue of notes
as money by national banks as in deroga.
ton of the constitution, and we demand
| that all paper which is made legal tender
| tor public and private debts or which is
| receivable for dues to the United States
shall be issued by the government of the
United States and be redeemable in coin.
| levied for the purpose of revenue, such
duties To be readjusted SO as to operate
equally throughout the country and not
discriminate between class or section, and
that taxation should be limited by the
needs ofs the government honestly
denounce as disturbing to business
the Republican threat to restore the
Mckinley law, which has been twice
condemned 10y the people in national
elections. and which. enacted under
the false plea of protection to home
industry, proved prolific breeder of
trusts and nIOnopolies, enriching the few
at the expense OF the many, restricted
trade and deprived the producers of the
great American staples OF access to their
natural markets. Until the money queS-
ton is settled We are opposed tOany agita-
ton for further changes in our tariff laws.
except such as are necessary to make up
the deficit in revenue caused by the adj
verse decision of the supreme court on
the income tax.
But for this decision by the supreme
court there would be no deficit in the
revenue under the law passed by a DEM
ocratic Congress, i'll strict pursuance of
| the uniform decisions of that court for
| nearly 100 years, that court having under
| that decision sustained constitutional OBJ
| jections to its enactment which had been
| oyerruled by the abiest judges who have
ever sat on that bench. We declare that
| it is the duty of Congress to use all the
| constitutional power which remains after
| that decision, or which may come from
| its reversal by the court as it may here
after be constituted, so that the burdens
OF taxation may equally and impartally
be levied, to the end that wealth may
| bear its due proportion Of the expenses of
the government.
We hold that the most efficient way of
protecting American labor is to prevent
the importation of foreign pauper labor
| to complete with 1t i'll the home market,
and that the value of the home market
| to our American farmers and artisans is
greatly reduced by vicious monetary
system which dspresses the prices of
| their products below the cost of produc-
| ton and thus deprives them of the means
of purchasing the products OF our home
manufactures.
The absorption of wealth 10y the few,
| the consolidation OF our leading railway
systems and the formation of trusts and
pools require stricter control by the
| Federal government of those arteries of
commerce. We demand the enlarge
ment of the powers of the interstate com
merce commission, and such restrictions
and guara ntees in the control of railroads
as will project the people from robbery
and oppression.
We denounce the protiigate waste of
the money wrung from the people by OPP
pressive taxation and the lavish apprO-
priations OF recent Republican Congresses
which have kept taxes high, while the
labor that pays them is unemployed and
the products of the peoples toll are de-
pressed in price until they TO longer re-
pay the cost of production. We demand
a return to that simplicity and economy
which BELTS Democratic government
and reduction in the number of useless
offices, the salaries of which drain the
substance of the people.
| We denounce the arbitrary interference
| by Federal authorities in local affairs as
violation ofthe constitution of the Unit
ed States, and a crime against free in
stitutions, and we especially object to
government interference by injunction as
new and highly dangerous form of OPP
preston by which Federal Judges. In
contempt of the laws of the States and
the rights of citizens, become at once
legislators, judges and executioners, and
we approvethe bill passed at the last SEES
| sion of the United States Serate, and now
pending in the House of Representatives
relative to contempts in Federal courts.
and providing for trial by jury in certain
cases of contempt.
No discrimination should be in
dulged in by the government of the
II pitpd States in favor of any of its debtors