The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1897-09-26
rHE TIMEs-RlCHMOND VA SUNDAY. SEPTEMBER % 1897

| the Senator to assert his rights. 10 cast
| aside his Innate modesty and stano oy lhe
claim Of his friends. who. In the broil OF
| the summer sun and the chill OF the
autumn winds. in high places and low
| places. proclaimed that II was ne ABOVE
all others. who framed the Chicago pat
form and fired the gun Of the people
| observation-disclosures. that ike Liberty's gun.
| twas heard round the world. IL VIII
| never do to have n writ in the his
tory Of the most remarkable conVehtion
| this country has ever seen. thse the senior
| United States Senator from virginia ,he
| Mother Of States and Statesmen the
| ideal land OF orators and heroes oraNs
| men and devoted women. simply preslucu
as temporary chairman for rev min
utes: then calling another TO the chalI,
| he was lost to sight. II not 10 meinoly
| dear" and took no part in the ptoceeuiise
and shared none OF the glOries OF tha'
ever memorable gathering. l drop tne
| curtain and shut out the tormeh''ns
| thought.
| THE SILENCE OF THE SENATOR
LAST FALL.
In nv letter OF the 18th instant, re-
ferred to the Senator's silence ast IAN
| on the clause in the Chicago pi"'ioi ~
denouncing Mr.. Cleveland Tor senulhs
troops to Chicago to quell moD lh"l
was threatening the destruction OF tno
mails and property OF the Uniteu Sta,ss
Like the people and the press sehe' S''!,
l had forgotten that the senator iau
ever emitted sound in response 10
the universal charge that he hau Vo.eu
in the Senate 10 commend MI CleNeiahu'
and bad voted in the convention 10 con-
denim him II Is now developed tnat NJ
returned from his European trip 10 his
native heath" between the LIST ana oth
OF September, about sixty days peioie
the election, and that in the last Gays ol
the campaign. after forty days anc loI's
nights. the duration OF Noah's nood' OF
silence. criticized on all sides, ne gave
forth his first utterance where the peOPie
could read II, in letter TO the hlchihohu
Dispatch. dissenting from the cohstruc'ion
which tho nation had placed upon the
Eaderal Interference clause. For at least
forty DAYS he permitted his platform 10
be attacked by the opposition speakers
and the clause mentioned construed by
the speakers on his own side as ue-
nunciation Of Mr.. Clevelands course ana
in that light endorsed By them TOT iorty
DAYS. at least he submitted TO crluclsh' II
I.may be permitted 10 say serenely anu
meekly." disregarding the edmonton that
"all delays are dangerous in war " nal
GIDlAnatl0n
hardness? lie saws he was Absorbed
in a law case from September the Z5d 10
October 18th. How complete must nave
been that absorption, and how unfortn-
nate. But what absorbed him from the
first Of September. when he returned from
Europe. to September the 23d, when the
law case commenced its process OF aD-
sorption? On September the llth, twelve
days before the beginning Of the
absorption and two days subsequent TO
Mr.. Bryan's letter Of acceptance
OF the nomination, Hon Judson
Harmon. Attorney-General Of the United
States. in reply TO inquiries from every
direction. published a letter in which he
said: Mr. Bryan. in his letter accept
ing the nomination for President by the
convention. amplfed the protest which
that convention made In It's platform
against Federal interference in local al
fairs which strangely enough IS not tound
in the platforms OF the other two con-
ventions which have also nominated MN.
As nothing else has been done or pro-
posed to which they can possibly apply
these protests were intended. and are
understood to be directed against the re-
cent action Of the President in forcibly
suppressing riotous disorders which had
stopped the carriage OF the mails and
Interstate commerce. and were defying
the civil officers Of the United states
The Acknowledgement then referred 10
Senator Daniers resolution commencing
Mr.. Cleveland. Did not Senator Danlel
read this letter? lie was at home not
absorbed" in his law case. Surely We
must infer he did. Then why did he de-
lay his letter to the Dispatch thirty-seyen
days?
But I most cheerfully accord TO the
A. H..t a
his letter Of October the 18th. 1t certainly
attracted little attention, and made no
impression on the public, for even re-
Gently the Dispatch. when Intercepted
on the subject, simply was under the I'M
preston that during the campaign the
Senator had published a letter not CON
STRUNG the plank as he does now, but
dissenting from IT, why. the Senator
himself had even forgotten he had written
a letter as shown by his first letter
in this controversy. Here Is what ne
wrote: IF at any time had believed OF
fanced that this clause OF the platform
would be tortured and perverted INTO the
meaning now attributed to IT by those
who style US Anarchists, / would nave
made my views known" &c.
NOW attribute 10 it," Does not this
mean he was hearing II for the first time?
Il would have made my views known.
Does not this mean he had not before
made his views known? VIII the Senator
bring TO bear his rules of grammatical
construction" and tell us how he re-
comedies this statement with the idea that
he had written a letter giving his views
except upon the theory that 1t had i'm
messed him so feebly that he had him
self forgotten he had ever written let
ter or made known his views? Then If he
had forgotten the fact. why should ne
have expected me 10 remember it, Why
not fire his broadside at his own memory,
and not al me? But II he did publish his
views October 18th. he seemed TO be averse
TO expressing them "in public on the
stage" for / am credibly informed that
while he was making his Jefferson Hotel
speech he was asked several times by
persons I'm the audience 10 speak OF his
Senate resolution and the Federal inter-
ference clause. but he broke not the
thread OF his verbosity' in deigning 10 re-
spond 10 the requests.
The sum OF the whole matter Is that
the Senator's views on silver were made
as plain as a patent medicine advertise
nent but his Vows on the Federal in
reference clause were so obscured that
the people never could find them with
the strongest searchlght He pinned his
silver position like a cockade on his hat,
and stuck his position on the Federal IN
reference clause in his boots.
THE SENATOR'S CONSTRUCTION.
Passing now 10 the Senator's construc-
ton OF the Federal interference plank l
,,tu cav that they who make laws can