Mexico weekly ledger., 1898-12-08


these aye men cometh n whose fane
Il national and who may not unreason-
ably aspire to the highest honors OF the
republio-Joseph O. 6ibley OF Pennsyi-
yania, a man who enjoys the pecniinf
distinction Of having been elected 70
congress from two rural districts o.
neither Of which is or was he . resi-
dent. City districts occasionally neno
n~onresidentz TO represent them in Maan-
ineton. 1t frequently oocursin England
that members Of parliament do NOS 1--we
In the Districts from which they arc
elected, but / feel reasonably certain
that sibley Is the only American living
or dead who ever represented y country
district In which be did not live.
He is brilliant oraslr and o multi
millionaire. What's more and better,
be is "a conscience Democrat The
story Of his conversion Is worth reiss-
ing ss a lesson 20 young men who are
constantly told that ~expediency e the
sure winner In politics It Is not true
In the long sun conscience, honesty,
honor, courage and lore Of truth win In
politics. Eibley Possesses Bill these IN 9
rare degree. He has In him the stun
out of which martyrs are made. Honest
men everywhere admire him, and bis
return TO the house after four years abb
senoe will be hailed with delight BY
every member whose good opinion ~
worth a bAubee. The Democrats VIII
welcome him with as much pleasure as
Wellington and his hard pressed army
welcomed Bluoher and his Germans as
the sun was setting at Waterloo. he IL
a host within himself and will add ma
terially to his fame in the Fifty-stxfh
congress.
The Genesis of n Democrat.
But as TO mis- genesis as a Democrat.
he was a Cameron Democrat-one OF
the S06 who under the lead Of Roscoe
Conkling, Don Cameron and John a.
Logan went down at Chicago with
Ulysses Simpson Grant in the most
memorable party contest In ell q his
tory. Somewhere among Sibley's per-
sonal belongings is one Of the medals
struck to commemorate that celebrated
struegle-which was the political Wa
terloo Of the conqueror Of Donelson,
Vicksburg and Appomattcx. Sibiey was
a man Of affairs, and at first took bis
politics on faith. By reason Of bis en-
vironments and associations be was nat
urally and inevitably a g~oldbug-until
he got to thinking on political subjects
for himself, which came about In this
wise: He was invited somewhither TO
deliver an address on finance. OF
that he at that time possessed only
what Governor Dingley would denom-
mate ga surface knowledge" Siblsy
was not content with that, and applied
to certain eminent goldbugs to name for
him the best literature TO read on the
subject. which they gladly did, and
when Sibley had studied 1t be had eyo-
luted into a rampant bimetaliist, and
has been one of its foremost champions
ever since. Great efforts have been made
to win him back, but without avail,
and, next to Bryan and Bland, he is the
best known free silver advocate In
America today. he re-enters congress
with his mind enriched by four years
Of study, his convictions strengthened
by four years Of observation and with
bis power for usefulness increased mani
fold. OF all the 800 men who will CON-
stitute the membership Of the Fifty
sixth congress there will be none-no.
not one-with n more remarkable po-
litical Or a more brilliant political fu-
ture than Joseph O. Sibley Of Pennsyl-
vania. Rich himself beyond the dreams
of ~svarioe, yet vilifed and tabooed by
the rich because he chose to do the right
for conscience's sake, be is loved by the
toiling millions as no other rich man
ever was and as few ever will DO. Such
men as Sibley are the hope Of the 70.
public. Any honor-howeyer exalted
bestowed upon him is worthily be-
slowed, and people may as we'll Ok their
eyes upon him as n of the coming
men of America.