The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-08-18
STEWART MAKES REPLY.
Calls on Thurston to Prove the SLAM
derous Charges.

Washington, Aug 17.--Senator w. M.
Stewart to-day sent the following let
ter in reply TO that of Senator Thurs
ton:
Hon. John NJ Thurston, Omaha, Neb.
Ny Dear Sir: l observe in the papers
this morning a letter purporting to
have been written by you to me, in
which i am pleased to note the follow
ing passage: Il would be the last man
in the world to assail the character of
Mr.. Bryan. / have not done so in any
instance, or by any word of mine. Mr.,
Bryan is the candidate of great party.
1t is not just to the American people
that charges of this kind should go
unanswered. He is the man, and the
only man, who can make definite and
conclusive answers"
Mr.. Thurston, how can you reconcile
the foregoing statement with your
charge against Mr.. Bryan and against
the silver producers, which is contain
ed in the following language used by
you and to which / had the honor to
call your attention in my former let
ter: ssThe proprietors of the big bo-
nanzas have found it profitable to keep
a large number of lecturers and other
the people. Among the many who
have thus been employed and carried
on the pay rolls of big bonanzas for a
number of years is VIM. j. Bryan, of
Nebraska, paid agent and spokesman
of the free silver combine.
'sIn the city of Omaha, where Mr..
Bryan does editorial work, the Omaha
Bee has made the specific charge edi-
torially, time and again. 1t has never
been met. | say as an American, cit
izen, having at heart the welfare of the
people, that the man posing as the adj
yocate of the down trodden masses of
his countrymen, holding crown of
thorns, in one hand and the bugaboo
cross of gold in the other, owes it
as duty>to every man, woman and
child in this country to say whether
that charge is false or whether it is
true.
Il do say, my countrymen, and /
know whereof ] speak, that for three
years and half, without regard to
Bryan, there has been selected corps
of orators and writers, paid employees
of the silver producers, spreading their
literature over the country from one
end to the other, telling the farmer
that he will have more for his work"
Your disclaimer in connection with
the foregoing statement requires ex-
planation, provided you consider your
reputation for truth and veracity
valuable. But your disclaimer that
you would ''be the last man to assail
the character of Mr.. Bryan" reflects
either upon your veracity or your
knowledge of the law Of libel. II YOU
are lawyer, and the, fact that YOU
have been retained by the Union
Pacific railroad for SO many years, in
dicates that you are useful in some
way to that institution, you ought to
know that repeating a slander or libel.
is especially as slanderous or libelous
as the original matter
You assume that you are not as
sailing Mr.. Bryan when you are
quoting what irresponsible newspapers
say of him and giving to such state
ments all the credit your high official
position can confer. You belittle your
understanding when YOU say that it
rs the duty of Mr.. Bryan to enter into
personal controversy with every hire
ling newspaper scribbler who is en-
.ployed to slander or defame him. The
people understand the animus of parti-
san newspapers and make proper al
lowances for their assertions, but when
you clothe their slander with your
official robes, it is lame and cowardly
defense on your part to protect your
self by skullking behind miserable
newspaper scribblers [ called your
attention to the injustice of your
charge, not the charge of newspapers,
which | have again quoted for the pur-
pose of calling your attention to the
charge you made, supposing that you
were an honorable man and would re-
tract the charges at once. if YOU were
unable to prove them Instead Of doing
so you repeated other stale ISLANDERS
agains Bryan, myself, Senator Sharp,
Governor Stanford and others, which.
if true, do not prove your charge
against Mr.. Bryan. / shall not re-
iterate in kind and quote what venal
newspapers or even better men than
yourself say of you, because it is not
you have unjustly and without
proof assailed the character of Mr..
Bryan. You cannot avoid that issue
by pretending that you only repeated
a falsehood which somebody else ori-
ing of a falsehood and attributing it
to irresponsible parties will impair
your influence in favor of the cause
you are advocating?
You must remember, my dear Sena-
tor, that there is a sense of public
justice which is outraged by slander
and libel, which you cannot Justify by
claiming you have a right to remark
it because you had not the courage to
originate it. If you have no case