The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1896-01-10
LIVE ISSUES.
Stewart on Silver.

mint act of 1873, the country was
nearly unanimous in favor of recti-
flying what was then supposed to
be mistake or an error, but which
is now known to have been the re-
suit of a conspiracy. About the
beginning of 1876, France and the
Latin Union having suspended
coinage, the market for silver bull
lion for coinage purposes in the
United States and Europe was sub
stantially cut off, and for want OF
such market the price of silver de-
clined. This led to an inquiry as
to the cause, and it was found that
legislation against silver had pro-
duced the unfavorable result.
The writer of this article, al
though member of the Senate in
1873, did nor learn of the demone-
tization of silver, in the bill cOdify-
ing the mint laws, until 1876. He
then wrote number of commune
cations to leading journals, such as
the Cincinnati Commercial, Chicago
Tribune and New York Herald.
These papers, and nearly all the
press of the United States, concur
red with our views and strongly adj
yocated the reconciliation Ofsilver.
1t was soon developed that the
national banks were opposed to any
legislation in favor of remonetiza-
ton, and one by one the leading
newspapers of the Republican party
became unfavorable to silver. In
Congress the opposition to silver
came principally from the Repub-
lican party and few eastern Dem
ocrats. The administration of
President Hayes, with Mr.. Sher-
man at the head of the Treasury
Department, was active in opposing
silver, and when a silver bill, intro
duced by Mr.. Bland, passed the
House of Representatives by an
overwhelming majority it was mu-
tilated in the Senate by what is
known as the Allison amendment,
which made it a silver purchasing
act instead of free coinage act.
The Democratic party as a whole,
was at that time and ever after,
until Mr.. Cleveland's first election,
a free coinage party. In 1884 the
platform of the Democratic party
upon which Mr.. Cleveland was
elected contained the following dec
laratioD: eve believe in honest
money, the gold and silver coinage
of the Constitution, and circulat-
ing medium convertible into such
money without loss"
But Mr.. Cleveland after his cleo
ton turned out to be a most violent
opponent of silver and a staunch
friend of the money powers. In
1888 the Democratic convention
was silent on the silver question,
and the Republican National Con-
vention adopted the following plank
with regard to silver: "The Repub-
lican party is in favor of the use of
both gold and silver as money, and
condemns the policy of the Demo
cratic administration in its efforts
to demonetize silver"
But President Harrison's admin
istration was as hostile to silver as
that of his immediate predecessor.
In 1892 both parties straddled, and
Mr.. Cleveland was elected because
Mr.. Harrison was an object lesson
of the gold standard in the White
House and attracted more attention
on that account than his opponent,
who was then in private life. it
was a slow race. A million voted
for Weaver, and another million OF
two stayed away from the polls.
But Harrison succeeded in disgust
ing more men than Cleveland, be-
cause his misconduct was more
recent and fresh in the minds OF
the voters. Mr.. Cleveland had
succeeded in organizing in the
Democratic party a strong, aggres-
sive gold party. The banks are
with him, the commercial press is
with him, the Northeastern Demo
Gratis are with him, and he has di-
vided the Democratic party and
secured, SO far as the government
of the party is concerned, more than
One-half of it. In the last express
sion of opinion of the Democrats