The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1898-09-01

It's material Interests nave not petn
neglected and that OF the d.200O00,des-
ignated In the river and hnrbor act OF
the Flfty-foUrth Congress, for the I'M
prOvement u the Monongaheia river
100000 has been made available by the
general appropriation bin. and the work
OF this great Improvement, IN conse-
quenee, Is progressing as rapidly and
satisfactorily as Il can well do,
And. finally, IN addition 10 all these
measures and others that could be mem
toned. the FIfty-dfth Congress has
stood by and sustained In every step
the present administration IN the innu-
guratlOn and prosecution OF the war
with Spain. made necessary by all the
dictates Of humanity, mercy aud love OF
free government. This war was iHstl-
tuted. prosecuted and ended In NAN
ner unknown In the worlds history.
Not a mistake was made, not II single
dollar was uselessly expended. not a de-
feat sustained.
Ths Present Situation.
And now mV fellow Republicans, ap-
preaching as we are another one of the
periodical campaigns. 1t is wise for us
to review the situation that confronts
Us. At the Threshold we may be par
doned for saying, in a spirit OF exulta-
tIon. that every pledge and promise
made by the Republicans in the cam
palgn Of 1886 has been redeemed. In the
remarks made by me in 1886, accepting
the nomination, called your attention
to the fact of what Democracy had cost
US, and / rehearsed the bitter history
whereby Grover Cleveland and the
Democratic party by falsehood md
Misrepresentation. raised the deceptive
cry that change from Republlcanism
was necessary and deceived the farmers
and laborers Of the country into making
the change: and called your attention
TO the millions OF dollars OF debt that It
had, brought to our government; to tho
billions OF dollars In shrinkage OF values
that 1t had brought to our people, the
decline and loss in products, In exports
in balance of trade.
I pointed out to you then, that four
years OF free trade and Democracy had
wrecked the banks, ruined the manu-
featuring Industries, discharged che
men from the mills, created panics, dis
tress and almost despair, and iudlca-
ted TO you that this was but repeu-
ton OF the same old, old story that had
always come TO our common country
when the Democratic party commenced.
Its tInkerlng with the tariff, and that
the message OF Grover Cleveland was
simply the language and the doleful.
song that had been uttered by James
Buchanan. The facts, the crisis, the
undeniable condition that confronted
the people in, 1896. were such that we
witnessed In this country one OF the
most remarkab bic political summersaults
ever turned by any political party;
abandoning all Of the teachings OF It's
fathers and founders. repudiating its,
leaders and It's administration, the
Democratic party organized upon a
single Idea and came before the coun-
try to ask 1t to trg new experiment,
that OF the free and unlimited coinage
OF silver, an experiment against COM
mon reason, common sense and every
sound instinct OF good judgment.
With q blind faulty, It's leadership
simply presumed that the thoughtful
earnest people OF this country would
permit them to repudIate. III moment,
the responsibility for their past errors
that had been so baneful In their eff
fects, declare the tarlh question settled
and spring the idea that all the trou-
bles that man wus heir to, grew out OF
the fact that we did not have Ia depre.
clated currency instead OF the sound
money given to the country by Re-
publican legislation. and which had
stood the test without complaint for
years. The cardinal theory of the DEM
ocratic party In 1892 was that prices
were too high, that the farmer was
down-trodden and oppressed by the
manufacturing hlrons who were reap
ing vast fortunes or OF them by reason
OF class legislation. They tlnkered with
the tariff, Inaugurated the Wilson mon
strosIty, brought US 20 panic and dis
tress. and then, because the farmer
could sell nothing and the manufactur-
ing industries were shut down, they In
sisted that, In order TO raise prices
again, II was necessary for US to debase
our currency.
The Defeat OF BryanIsm.
1t was . question with them in 1892
how to lower the prlcea that marked
that era of prosperity Having de-
stroyed those prices, in 1896 their sole
energies were bent upon raising them
by some new experiment. The very cs-
senee OF the free coinage idea was the
false theory, promulgated by the
Democratic candidate for President, that
the price OF silver controlled the price OF
wheat and other commodities and that
because silver had been demonetiZed
and dlscredlted It had sunk in value
and that wheat, farm products and 9TH
or commodities had sunk In value with
It.
il did not take long for the people Of
this country to determine TINT II was
tired OF experiments and that Il was
not willing to trust farther q party
whose leadership so little understood
the true principles OF political economy,
and as q result, William Mckinley, n
brave. earnest. consistent exponent OF
protection and sound money. was elect
cd 70 the presidency. We promised the
people In the campaign OF 1896 that the
tarlft should be rendjusted and restored
to the old basis OF Republican protec-
tlon. We declared TINT every dollar.
whether 1t be gold, silver. bank cur
rency or greenbacks, should be equal,
by the pledge and faith OF this govern
ment with every other dollar and should
so stand equal. worth 100 cents in the
markets OF the world, and We predict
ed that this policy would restore aguin
prosperity 10 our suffering country.
raise the value OF farm products. and
once again make 1t possible for the far
mers 10 sell their products for enough
to pay taxes and reap profit.
We were cooliy informed bF the ex-
cited cXfoncnts Of the proposed expert
ment OF free coinage that It's Inaugural
ton would bring panic and additional
trouble at first until matters became
adjusted. We asserted, ON the other
hand. that protection and sound money
had been tczted heretofore by the
American people and never found want
Ing. and that Its inauguration would
at once settle tho distressed condition
Of things and bring us immediate re-
lief