The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-07-15

|
actual sight of an open sea and a safe har-
bcrY 1t is with the ranlS aud file of tho
| party TO say, To tho rank and file thcre-
| fore. We turn With eager, but with conf
dent hone. We ask them, IN sober truth,
as friends and brothers, to look about them,
| 20 atop and think. and, seeing whittier we
are being hurried by passion and error 10
help us reverse the englsss before 1t is too
| late
am not unmIndful OF the circumstance
that many honest democrats have been
honestly dcludei into the belief that there
is something In the free silver suggestion.
Gentlemen, there Is nothing absolutely
nothing, Ii IL the mos, barren OF barren
| iiealitios. l but quote from a speech made
| by myself some seven years ago when
say that. II tho skies should rain nilvcr--if
| IN" creeks and the covos should overflow
with silyer~so that the farmer could come
| ana MI his baskets and his sacks with n,
| ana cart IL Gift would yield him no rur-
manont relief. hut under the theories and
methods VI taxation, both National aud DO
nestle. to which he tamely subml,s II
would quickly lind It's way back 10 where
all MS earnings and accretons 70 that ~
into the pockets Of persons named by law
10 rob him Since live on n farm, and
when the mortgage is lifted shalt avn
farm; | may claim 10 be something of
farmer myself and speak from the
standpoint OF Immediate practical. personal
Is the farmer robbed hv the nriff--pricny
all that he has to sell In free trade mar
kct and taxing all he has TO buy to en-
rich favored few but that IN every pos
slblc way, through a vost establishment of
useless officials. through the public chart
ties and corrections. through every public
appropriation and expenditure. Is he made
10 pay excessive tribute aud 10 carry extra
bur hens. Heing his comnatriot. rharlug
with him every common Interest, ] Ger
tRnly am equally his friend and his neigh
Dor md not his enemy, | could not do
him an injury without doing myself an In
jury, and two things | assert, waiting upOn
the event for my yiudication First. The
irrldcscpnt dream OF free silver coinage AT
the ratio OF &c to i, which means nothing
hut silver moromotalllsn. VIII never ma
tcrialZc In this mighty land. and never
should and second, that II u 10 the farmer
blessing that II never Will for tho iN,-
son that. whilst MeXlcanlzing our ,urren
ty and building q Chinese wall around orr
commerce. II would reduce nm TO CON
dition little better than that OF the peon of
Latin America or tho poor Sicillan rcnSant'
who never saw a golden coin in all their
days but who exc ont precarious lives on
shlnplastcrs and copper. Indeed II can
nnIy he TO shin plastcrs and copper, ana not
30 gold and silver that the free SILVER nhli-
osupher refers 10 md means where no
means ANYTHING al when he'iail's about
"himcialllsm." a.,
Tbore Is ,ot one Of thctc free silver phil
osonhcrs who. " he he entirely sincero can
rive any hcttcr renson for the ialth WA. ~
in him than nv Wailins money Wortnl'Fs
and aloliEhing credits his honstcl 'heoIE
VII vino ont NIL Indebtedness. public ana
,',it,.,,o admit the force Of the argu-
mont 7, nppenls to every man VINO " |
hcod,oss of his country's honor ana his
own II nppeals 20 every hankrupt IN we
land VI We were nation ~ ohhNtup.9 =,
might hc worth our while 10 ,unsun.n t
,hnnrh cvon rs n specific for debt even ~
,'..o,,,isod rc,tor 70 the insoivent-I would
r,j,.ct II as IN the last degree m'sieansmaa; 10
;irha Internal history OF the hu'nu',"
,,r,,, ,hc las, three decades mas pev"
1vntnst the forces of reacuon' n,
forces ar@yed themselves mr.. o'J ~
W. siac of visionary schehc !"
,ne S' n,o three las, constitutional amend
,ncnts and thus TO alter. " not 10 ~
,''rso. the results of the war; he WI"
o,,,'osod ,his visionary schcme was "o
ronnced ms a traitor TO the son,m III" ,,,s.i,
radical In disguse. inc Hun,,n' ho
played directly into the hHnuh y" ,,a,r
roso n,ainst The loyalty Of the sonth anu
IN solidify The North II conius,n an"
democratic counseis' ~ "'
Ia ,,cd ,be dny Of dolivernnce. But no eooh
~, b,d n vanished from the scene. an eN
,loded bomb. than II was succoedou ny
another device equally misleading,
TbIs was plan for paying the national
1ah, ,n prnenbacks and for hoodipg thH !
country with an irrcdfemable paper cur
rency. There being nothing back ~ w.
however. except fallacy and noise y 9peuu.
iIy came TO an end. Yet II hoin w own
long enough to consolidate the repupNnhnn'
n divide the democrats and 10 rctard the q
,o,nine nj that better understanding be- !
,,,nrn the sections of the Union, %hloh
,ood men were earnestly seeking WHIST
H. lasted. tie yotaries stlgmahhed every one
who opposed 1t as n hloated bondhoIdrr auu
m enemy of the people
Finally. brought back to power, IN fplte /,
# its rsacionary clements, the democratic 4,
,ortv had TO face the responsibilities oil
.overnment. But tho impractlcabloe who /,
,ad done their utmost TO keep II out OF
,owor forever and had greatly obstructed a
ia DrogroGs, were neither eAlingnhheu =
,or subduod, They proceeded with tbelr 1
york of party dismemberment They de- II
Gated the party's declared tariff policy. 4
rbey defeated its conservative fiscal policy /
Then, fully organized, they devised .
cbcme having all the evil advantages oil ,
he two which had preceded II. with some IA
hing to spare. This was nothing less man n
he abandonment Of the high ground whieh 4,
10 democratic party had always occupied n
n lighting the battles OF the people ana q
he concentration upon lower levnl oil all II
he disanocted elements Of society O
II was nothing more than q new de- e,
arturo. II was TO all lnicnts and purposes g
revolution. IT took no account OF the Of
arty's origin and nature. its orderly ante h
edents and dcliberative character IRE q
INITIATING a National convention Into a v
Imult, it proceeded in "A frenzy OF excite II
ient to adopt platform subyersive OF Il
principles constructed TO meet
10 requirements OF the silver protection
Is on the one hand and the populists on /,