The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-03-20
DUTY OF THE HOUR.

The present week will witness the
selection of Republican delegates to
the state and the several district con-
ventions of Minnesota, and upon the
character of the delegates will depend
the class and kind of representatives
that will be sent to ST. Louis to take
part in naming the next president of
the United States. With all due re-
gard to the Importance attaching to
future political conventions to be held
this year, and conceding that there
will be issues involved demanding the
most thoughtful consideration of all
lovers of good government and clean
administrative officials in the various
departments of county and state, the
fact remains that no issues can pos
Sibly attain in these which will equal
in importance the national conven-
tion.
Only towards will excuse, palliate
or temporiZe with great political
questions which affect the prosperity
and future success of the party to
which they owe allegiance or to which
they give their support for the COM
mon good of the common people. And
in this year of grace there is no room,
much less demand, for towards to be
placed in responsible positions OF
trust The duty of the hour should
appear plain to every Republican in
Minnesota who believes in the princi-
Piles of the party, and so appearing it
should inspire him to activity OF that
determined kind which will move him
to become resolute and aggressive,
yielding not an iota to any request or
demand not in complete harmony
with the dictates of his own con-
science and the fulfillment of those
creeds so needful to the country's well
fare and the glory of the party.
Not since the early sixties has there
been so much interest centered in a
national convention as will develope
in that which will select successor
to President Cleveland in June. The
weak, vascillating and disgusting
policy of the Democrat administra-
tion regarding foreign affairs, together
with the debt creating enactments
through frequent bond issues, and the
destructive results of free trade have
combined to bring the Democratic
party into contempt and ridicule by
all people not so completely blinded
by party as to refuse to see and believe
and take heed. There is little or no
question but that the next president
will be a Republican, and this fact is
so generally accepted without reserva-
tion as to cause an unusual number of
eminent gentlemen to aspire to the
nomination. With such splendid men
as Mckinley, Reed, Davis, Allison and
Morton to choose from there need be
no apprehension but that the right
man will be chosen, for any one OF
these would be wholly acceptable to
the masses. But there is something
for the ST. Louis convention to do be-
sides the naming of candidate, i'm
portant as that task may appear.
The man, however eminent, popular
and deserving, must be necessarily
weak and inconSpicuOuS unless he
shall stand upon platform that shall
inspire confidence. And that conf
dence, sure to bring success, can only
be had by an open, frank, conscientious
and emphatic declaration for sound
money, without tincture OF free
silver, for protection and reciprocity,
and for a firm though conservative
foreign policy.
To secure such results as will at
once put the party before the country
in a light to command the united sup
port of all classes, the first duty of re-
publicans is to attend the primaries
and select only such men as delegates
with sound Republican principles.
The FREE PRESS desires to particu-
larly impress this fact upon Second
district Republicans. 1t should be, as
we believe it is, the pride of all to feel
that there is no district in any state
that stands more distinctively for
sound money than does the Second
Minnesota, and nothing should be al
lowed to creep into the convention to
be held in Mankato on the 23rd inst.
that will lower our standard in this
respect or pluck from our wealth a
single bud. That such an effort will
be made we do not charge; that such
an effort may be made is not i'm
probable. and inasmuch as a condition
even exists that would lend color to
the belief remote though it be, of
such possibility the utmost vigalence
in the selection of the right men as
delegates should be prosecuted. This
suggestion should apply with equal
force to the county conventions as to
the state, congressional and national.