The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-08-30

ueieSuGioHS scheduled TO vlS1t Major Nc
Kinley to-day, the first arrived at 7:45.
1t was Commercial Mems Mckinley Club
No 1, of Chicago, 800 strong.
Numerous banners were carried by the
commercial men, conspicuous among
them being one with the pictures of Nc
Kinley and Hobart
At 10 n. m. the visitors marched to
Major Nj Kinley's residence. Mr.. Corey
introduced the members in short speech
which was interrupted at short intervals
by applause, and when Major Mckinley
stepped upon the chair to respond he was
given most hearty ovation. 1t was
some moments before he could proceed.
When he could be heard he said:
Mr. Corey, Gentlemen of the CONNER
cial Travellers Association and Ny Fellow
Citizens: | bid you welcome, sincerely
welcome, to my home. Thrice welcome
are you here. ] am honored, greatly
honored, by the call of this assemblage of
commercial men representing great COM
mercial interests, coming from every sec
ton of our country. Although you are
accustomed to calling on people for what
believe is chiefly your business, let me as
sure you that you never made a call any
where more agreeable to your host than
this call is to me. 1t would be pleasant to
me personally to meet you on any coca
sion, but 1T is peculiarly gratifying to
meet you now, coming as body to tes-
tlfy your united and confident devotion
to the Republican principles enunciated
by the national Republican convention of
1896.
81 recognize your influence as one of
the most potent factors in political con-
tests and | am glad to know that this
year in greater degree than ever before
the commercial men of the country are
united in the cause of the Republican
party. You have not always been in such
close agreement with each other politi-
cally as now, but you have had expert
ences for four years or nearly so: YOU
have been attending the school in which
all the rest of us have been pupils 1t
has been n free school, the tuition has
been free, but the ultimate cost has been
very great.
mo body of American citizens of equal
number could properly have deeper in
terest in the success of Republican prin-
ciples than you; and, none, l am sure,
can do so much to secure their certain
triumph as you.
"You are not only carriers of com
merce, but creators of confidence; not
only advocates of progress, but promoters
of prosperity. Everywhere YOU inspire
either confidence or distrust, for YOU tell
the truth about the condition of the
country. You not only sell goods-or
used to-but you disseminate information
among your customers There is no more
certain barometer of the business of the
United States than the sentiment of the
men which this body assembled here this
morning is representative. You encour-
age the respondent and quicken the lag.
ging into fresh activity. You give new
hope aud stimulate new effort in that
hA1x Of IN,r.-,
so largely depends the revival of business
i'll all parts our country.
''What we want above all else. nv fell
low citizens, is confidence. And we can.
not get confidence by threatening to revo-
lutionize all values and repudiate obliga-
tions, both private and public. You
know the facts of business and can dispel
the theories of the dreamer and the mis-
statements of the demagogue and one
thing / like about the commercial trav-
elers is that everyone of them is for the
United States of America and always
stand up for America. We are all mem
bers OF the great American family and
those policies which are good for one of
us are good for all of us. Those policies
that are good for the Eastern and the
Central States are good for the West and
great Northwest. We have always prac-
ticed the golden rule. The best policy is
to Live and let live and to buy and sell
in the way that will best promote the
good OF ALL 1t never pays to buy cheap
goods from II rival whose object in selling
to you at low price is to establish IL
business that will in time destroy your
own. We want no cheap goods in this
country at the expense of free and honest
American labor. We want no cheap goods
whose production would require us to in
troduce in the United States industrial
and social depreciation. The commercial
travellers are practical business men and
comprehend business results. They un-
der5tand business; they know what will
best promote it and they realize that it is
not what it ought to be to-day in the
United States. | read an interview yes
terday with n commercial traveller and
he said he had been in seven States and
the reply to his question: DO you want
anything in my line: came the answer:
We don't need anything now Well,
gentlemen, we need all you have in this
line of workers this year.
You will agree, l am sure. in the
proud claim of Henry Clay-for it is just
as true to-day as ever before--'The cause
of protection said he, lis the cause of the
country and it must and will prevail 1t
is founded in the interests and affections
of the people, Reciprocity, too, the
gift of Blaine and Harrison to the nation
deferred by Garfeld's untimely death,
was at length proclaimed by that great
President, statesman and patriot, Benja-
min Harrison. Reciprocity, the twin OF
protection and true hand maiden of pros
perity, already has strong hold on the
affections of our people. Limited as her
ho l,a al,