Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1897-05-21
STEWART HITS HARD.
THE SENATOR REVIEWS CLEvE-
LANDS SPEECH.
The Stuffed Prophet Portrayed as the
Mott Boldfaced Hypocrlte of Modern
Times-Can No Longer Even Claim
His Weil-Known Ignorance as Defense.
(By William M. Stewart, Senator from
Nevada)


qualities of greed, stolidness, pervers-
ity, ignorance. wilfullness, contempt
for truth, and love of falsehood, which
haS not been analysed by the philoso-
piers; otherwise Grover Cleveland
could not have been twice president
with the reputation of multi-million-
aire. Apparently unconscious that he
deserves to be hated more than any
other living man for betraying his
party and his country and wrecking
the happiness of seventy millions OF
people, he violently attacks the Repub-
lican party for carrying out the tarih
program laid down in the st. Louis
convention. The Republican party de-
clared in favor of maintaining the
present gold standard until Europe
should otherwise order. Has not the
Republican party maintained that
plank in its platform? The Republic
an party also declared for tariff for pro-
lection. Is not the Republican party
engaged in carrying out its platform
in that regard?
These plain pledges stared the stuhed
prophet in the face when he betrayed
his own party and used the power and
patronage, which the Democratic party
had conferred upon him. to aid in the
election of the Republican ticket. Has
anybody told Grover that all that is
necessary for him to do is to get into
q ri ha Do
adhering to its platform, and that II he
will do so everybody will suppose he
betrayed the Democratic party
through mistake?
There was no mistake about 1t. II
we admit, as we suppose we must, that
Grover did not support the Republican
ticket on account of the tariff, or on
account of any financial legislation not
pledged or limited at in the platform,
some other reason must be found why
the ex-president betrayed his party.
Many see, or think they see, circum-
stances and conditions which had in
volved Grover and his administration
with the bond and money jobbers of
tricate himself Sixty-two millions of
four per cent thirty-year bonds were
sold at more than twenty per cent
less than their market price. Up to
the time of this transaction no United
States four per cent bonds during the
ten years preceding had sold for less
than one per cent premium for the
time they had to run. The sixty-two
millions had thirty years to run and
should have sold for from twenty-five
to thirty per cent premium, and would
have done so if the president had been
as good friend to the American peo-
pie as he was to the money powers.
In fact, he himself wrote message
to Congress that he could get sixteen
millions more for these same bonds If
Congress would pass law for their
payment in gold. Congress passed no
such law. The bonds were issued and
sold and Mr.. Cleveland and the pur-
chasers all united in asserting that,
notwithstanding Congress had not au-
thorized payment in gold, they were
gold bonds, both principal and inter-
est. and the interest has been thus far
paid in gold This transaction was so
extraordinary, coming as 1t did in a
long line of questionable transactions,
that the senate authorized the finance
committee of that body to investigate
these bond deals. The committee met
I'm New York and called before them
Morgan and Belmont, the parties with
whom the president and secretary of
the treasury made the transaction, and
manfred of them what profit was made
in the purchase and sale of these bonds.
The gentlemen declined to answer.
They we're further inquired Of who re-
ceiyed the profits of the transaction.
The gentlemen declined to answer.
For some unaccountable reason the
matter was dropped and the investiga-
tion abandoned without making re-
mort to the senate 1t would have been
very easy for the senate committee to
have called Morgan and Belmont 70
Washington and put the same ques-
tions to them which they had asked
them in New York, and If they had
failed to answer the courts would have
found lodgings for them at public ex-
pense.
II may be that these transactions so
bound Cleveland and his party to the
money powers who wanted Mckinley
with a view Of similar financial pro-
ceedings, and particularly with a view
of maintaining the single gold stand
ard. that Mr.. Cleveland dared not do
otherwise. He had taken too many
steps. in the wrong direction to retrace
them in that emergency. To keep in
line or to keep under cover he did as
belmont and Morgan required him to
do in the election, and now, forsooth,
nretends that he didn't know that it
was the Republican party he was aid
ing: that he did not know the Repub-
lican party was for tariff; that he did
not know anything about the Republic
an party, and, therefore, he sacrificed
himself in a patriotic effort to save the
country from bimetallism, and to keep
ou the road to ruin through gold con-
traction and falling prices.
rot Mr. Cleveland suuirm az nnuob