Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-09-19
JUST A QUESTION OF HONOR
Hon. {. |. Russell Puts Il in
Plainest Light.
WAS LEFT TO ARBITRATION
And Both Parties Were Equally Bound by the
Conventions Decree.
BRYAN AND PALMER CONTRASTED
Fraudulency of the Claim That the Mission
OF the National Party Is to Pre-
serve Ancient Democraey-Bit
of Buncoism.

The following letter is timely and will
be read with much Interests:
Hot Springs, Ark, Sept Is, 1885,
Gen. C. M. Shelley, Birmingham, Ala
Dear General: 1t is with the deepest
regret that l am compelled to inform
you that it will be impossible for me to
meet you and other loyal democrats of
the state of Alabama in Birmingham on
the 18th instant for the purpose of TAX
ing counsel concerning the present cam
paign.
lnasmuch as l am unable to be present
at the proposed ratification meeting,
will avail of this opportunity to submit a
few observations on the political issues
as presented in the state of Alabama.
Inc history OF the fInancial Issue III Ala
banla.
1t will be recalled that near the close
of the year OF 1895 Governor Oates de-
clined to become candidate for re-elec-
tion TO the Office of governor and it look
ed for lew days as IL Captain Johnston
would, without opposition, be nominated
as the democratic candidate for governor
of Alabama. The 81 Iation, however,
was changed by the insistance of the
Montgomery Advertiser and otner sup
poitsrS OF Mr Cleveland that a majority
of the democrats in the state favored a
gold standard and the financial policy of
Mr.. Clev Gland $ administration, and that
they must have candidate before the
state democratic primary who would rep
resent these sentiments. In pursuance
OF this demand Hon. r. HI. Clarke Of Mo-
bile was induced to make the race as the
recognized candidate of the gold stand
ard democrats and in proval of the
f1nancial policy of Mr.. eveland's ad-
ministfation. Such weie he conditions
Wnen the state executive committee met
in Montgomery in January last and call
ed a primary election to take place the
following April. This committee. fixed
the qualifications of all voters and the
terms and conditions under which the
primary election should be held. Every
Democratic voter in the state was fully
lnftiined as to these requirements. With
full knowledge of the terms and cor Ii
tloiiss SO fixed, Mr.. r. II. Clarke enle 4
the 1ace as the representative of the gold
staneard democrats and Captain John
ston entered as the representative of
those demanding the unlimited and free
coinage of silver at ratio of Is to l.
Now, ] insist that good faith and honor
required the gold wing of the democratic
party to have declined to enter into this
primary contest for supremacy If they
felt that in the event the silver wing of
the party was successful they could not
conscientlously support the candidate
and platform of that wing. But having
participated in the primary, how can they
now refuse to abide by the result and
justify their action in such refusal?
The gold standard democrats were hon
estly and fairly defeated by a majority
of the democratic voters of the state in
primary election held in strict accord
ance with the terms and conditions pre-
scribed by the state executive committee
They nevertheless sent about IT'S dele
gates to the state convention, who par
tcipated in the deliberations of that con-
vention as representatives of the gold
standard democrats. Now, what right
did they, as such delegates have in that
convention If they and those whom they
represented did not intend to be bound by
the action of that convention? The ac-
tion OF that convention had all the bind
Ing force of an agreed arbitration
AS an illustration. suppose A and B
SHOULD have difference, and, under arti-
cles of agreement, submitted their diff
ferences to an arbitration, both present.
ing facts in support of their respective
claims, and the arbitrator, after a full
hearing, should decide in favor of b, and
then A should refuse to be bound by the
result of the arbitration. Would not the
universal opinion of all far-minded and
honorable men be. as to the conduct of
A, that no obligation, however solemn.
would bind him, and would not his neigh
bors thereafter refuse to trust him?
Bryan and Palmer Compared.
oiiltc tHc ilo1UllldL1On OF Mr. BRYAN as
the democratic presidential candidate all
OF the great daily newspapers of this
country have flashed search lights upon
all of his public utterances. The New
YORK World made thorough investiga-
ton OF his speeches and of the editorials
OF the paper under his control and as a
result of its nvestigatio 1t found that
there was no encouragement for anarch-
lists In anything Mr.. Bryan had said or
written. He was found to be an ardent
advocate of reasonable social reforms
for elevating the moral tone of the n,Ih-
lie mind and for the vigorous enforce
ment of the law. securing to all the pos
session of liberty, property and happi-
ness.
When you contrast the record and
character of Mr. Bryan with that of
General Palmer the result Is largely in
favor of Mr.. Bryan. For instance when
the question of appointing committee
to investigate the Homestead strike was
presented, General Palmer in his speech
In the United States senate among other
things said:
II maintain according to the law of
the land, not as the law is generally un-
derstood. but according to the principles
of the law, which must hereafter be ap-
piled TO the solution of these troubles
that those men had the right to be there
That makes 1t necessary for me to as
sert that those men had a right to en-
ployment there. They had earned the
right to live there, and these large man
ufacturing stablishments--and there is
no other road out of this question-must
hereafter be understood to be public es-
adjustments in the modified sense
which will explain in a moment, in
which the public is deeply interested
and the owners of these properties must
hereafter be regarded as holding their
property subject to the correlative rights
of those without whose services the
property would be utterly valueless.
That concession which make only con-
cedes to them a right to reasonable prof
IL on the capital invested in their enter
pfssee."
: Mr.. Cleveland. and the other boiling
democrats indorse General Palmer as a
suitable man to be elected president Of
these United States. Mr.. Bryan has