The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-10-10
GEORGE FRED WILLIAMS.
Nominated by the Silver Democrats
For Governor of Nassachusetts.

Nominated by the Silver Democrats
For Governor of Massachusetts.
From Louisville Courier-Journal Dem).
Washington, Sept. 2S.-To-day the sill
verite democracy of Massachusetts nomi-
mated George Fred Williams for governor.
Times change and men change with
them. 1t was not very long ago that Mr.
Williams was the sound-money demo-
cratic whip in the United States con-
gress In that congress he bolted the
caucus nominee for speaker because Mr.
Crisp was not sound on the money ques-
ton. On that memorable night in March,
1892, When Dick Bland went down before
that combination of Tammany mugwump-
cry and republicanism George Fred
showed that he was no mean organizer.
Bourke Cochran led the debate on the
sound money side; Williams marshaled
the forces when the roll was called. It
was BANDS bill, and it provided for 16 to
l ftat The motion was to lay on the
table, or some equally summary sample
OF parliamentary fence. The vote was
years l4S, nay 147. Except that day, when
old Ben Butler proposed a certain CON-
mittee investigation when Mr.. Speaker
Blaine killed his force bill, no occupant
Of that chair was ever paler than Crisp.
He ordered the clerk to call his name.
He voted no, making tie The motion
was lost, and then it was that the battle
ragged. Roll call followed roll call, and
about o'clock in the morning Cochran,
Reed, Williams and Harter triumphed.
Silver was downed for that congress. 1t
was as fine parliamentary battle as
ever saw.
George Fred Williams is now a free-sil-
yer man. and I make no doubt he is per-
tectly sincere. He is a doctrinaire and
mugwump doctrinaire at that. A republi-
can born and reared he refused to vote
for Mr.. Blaine in 1884, and since then ne
mas invariably voted the democratic tick
ct. He is of Mayflower descent, and. like
Wendell Phillips, he would say what he
believes to-day, though it contradicted all
ne said yesterday. There are a heap Of
little minds in this country, who think
they think political inconsistency the
greatest of crimes-Shetland pony states
men-who pervert and distort political op-
ponents, like Mr.. Carlisle. Perhaps the
greatest man now living is that venerable
English statesman, who wrote a book en-
titled Church and State" and probably
there is not thought in the volume that
Mr.. Gladstone does not repudiate, though
he believed every word of it when he
wrote it. The world has produced few
nrst-class statesmen who were uniformly
consistent
When George Fred Williams and Sher-
man todr came mere six years ago they
were mugwumps and reformers They re-
FUSED to vote for Crisp and one or the
other-or was it both?-shed tears when
Mills went down before the Hill-Crisp
combine. Williams is a snowy mana
handsome fellow, something of a dandy
and, while it was the fashion to ridicule
MIN, even Bland and Bryan acknowledge
his conspicuous abilities. He is a scholar
and an orator. He is also an author
When he left the republican party he
burned his bridges. He has thought much
and he is man of strong convictions. He
believes that the republican party is a
vicious organization. Republican states
men like Cabot Lodge and Joseph Henry
walker have heaped both polished and
coarse abuse on him. He is a man Of
strong prejudices Unfortunately he does
not possess the self poise, the grand char
acter, of William E. Russell Last year
he was derelict on the political sea and
he drifted into the Bryan port. When the
two We're in congress together the young
man from Nebraska looked on the young
man from Massachusetts as a dangerous
fanatic and the young man from Massa-
chusetts looked on the young man from
Nebraska as an irresponsible agitator In
1896 they got together, but neither Will
ever weed as wide a row in the future as
ne has in the past