Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1898-09-30
Friday EVENING, SEPT. so. 1898.

GQAISGlGTs
of skilled men. men often remarkable
and sometimes upright. There are
able and reputable men engaged IN
commerce. trade, manufactures, rail-
roads and great enterprises. But where
do We find a statesman in all this six
millions of people and where shall we
find any healthy political action? Time
was when New York produced men OF
eminent political ability. There were
Hamilton, Jay, Burr, Dewitt Clinton,
Silas Wright, Martin Van Buren,, w. l..
Marcy. Horatio Seymour, Hamilton
Fish, Wm. H. Seward and Saml. J. Til.
den. After this came the epoch OF the
political bosses, men without faith or
convictions, such as Tweed, Platt,
Croker, Evarts, Cleveland and Hill.
All these names suggest history aud
a lesson of decadence in public virtue
and morality. And yet the democrats Ui
New York thus unworthily led have ex-
erted baleful influence in democratic
national conventions. In the grand
convention of 1896 delegation armed
with cash by the million, panoplied in
fraud and mendacity, came to bride,
caiole and control the convention for
the defeat of free silver coinage. They
were completely ioiled by the purity
and heroism OF the delegates from the
South and the West, and then OF course
PLAYED double part, refusing to partic-
ipate in the counsels Of the convention,
and yet lacking the manliness to with
draw from the body whose work they
were schemiag to defeat and destroy.
IL spite OF all this treachery which
was followed up by the nomination Of
Palmer and the opeu apostasy OF
Cleveland anc Hill, the rank and file Of
the New York democrats cast five.
sixths of the democratic vote for VIM.
J. Bryan who represented the Chicago
platform. The New York republican
leaders who in a more direct and,
therefore. more honorable manner,
have adhered to the cause OF monopoly
and the gold trust and other trusts as
against the cause of the people, have
preserved their hold on their party ard
still retain under Platt's leadership a
very strong influence in the republi-
can councils. Platt is not an orator, OF
statesman, or writer, or man Of
affairs, as the phrase was once employ
ed, but he is q machine leader, domi-
mates his party in New York, pulls
down Black and sets up Roosevelt,
and has the ear of President Mckinley
As the organizer Of corrupt forces Plat
is stronger than ever with the republi
can organization in New York, and
there is no moral sentiment in the re
publican party anywhere which objects
to his leadership. Such man as Plat.
or Hanna is its natural leader and mas
te-. 1t is far different with Croker,
Whitney, Hill and the other New
York democratic leaders. The Chicago
platform Of 1896 and the nomination OF
that incorruptible patriot, Mr.. VIM. J.
Bryan, was triumph over their rotten,
and tricky leadership. For long years
they had brought discredit on the party
and weighed it down. The democratic
party of the South and West had after
long patience and endurance OF an H.
tolerahly corrupt yoke come to the con-
clusion that New York leadership must
be discarded and the party planted
firmly on the doctrines OF Jefferson and
Jackson. A government for the peo-
pie and not for Wall street was what
the convention at Chicago declared for.
That was our fight i'll 1896. The fight
made by Mr.. Bryan and by the democ-
racy OF the Union was one of the nc
blest in history. The republicans had
on their side the combined capital of
Europe and America to crush the rights
of the masses. They were aided by an
enormous corruption fund and by the
open, fragrant treason of Cleveland
and Hill. Cleveland, regardless of
the unmerited honors he had re.
oeived from the democracy gave
open support to the boiling tick
ct. Hill shut himself up at Wolfert
Roost, not opening his mouth to say a
word for either side. In spite of all
this the democrats of the Union cast
larger vote for Bryan than they had
ever done before for Presidential can
didate. Emancipated from the leader
ship of New York, the democrats of the
South and West need only to adhere to
their principles as nobly and eloquently
proclaimed in 1896, and victory will be
theirs. Its easy to see that conspiracy
is being Matched by some of the East.
ern politicians to defeat the nomination
of Mr.. Bryan in 1900 and to ignore or
repudiate the Chicago platform. We
shall be told by the men who buy and
sell in the political market that the
democrats cannot succeed without
New York, New Jersey and Connecti-
cut, and that they can carry those