The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-08-18

> SANDS Listen TO bryan
Des Moines, Iowa, August 1.-THE
city Is full Of democrats tonight TO At
tend the democratic state convention
and listen to William Jennings Bryan,
General ". B. Weaver, and others, ex-
pound the gospel Of Is to 1, antrim
perialism and antitrust views. Two
great meetings were held this evening,
the main one at the auditorium, where
w. j. Bryan spoke to 5000 people, and
the other at the tabernacle where Gen.
eral Weaver held forth for an hour IN
til Mr.. Bryan came from the first meet
ing. Some 1900 persons congregated
at the tabernacle, and the two build
1ngs were not great enough TO accom-
modate the throng.
concerning the action Of the democrat
ic convention, which meets tomorrow
morning, but little can be said with ac-
curacy. The friends Of the various can
didates for the nomination for COVER
nor have been hard at work all today,
and tonight the winner cannot be pre-
dicted.
The action of the convention on plat
form and nominations depends entire
ly on which wing Of the parry, radical
or conservative, is in control.
w. j. Bryan spoke for two hours at
the auditorium tonight 20 an audience
Of 4 800 people. The house was crowd
ed and the audience, which included
practically all the delegates to the dem
ocratic convention to be held mo
row, took every opportunity to ap-
plaud.
Mr. Bryan first reviewed the record
of the republican party, accusing it Of
putting the dollar above the man. He
then took up the silver question, say
ing prosperity did not set in until six
months after the election, when the
Klondike gold mines began to be heard
from. The republicans who claim that
times are better because the balance
of trade is in favor of the United States
give away their own position and admit
the democratic view of he cumulative
character of money is correct. The
financiers Of England, he said, control
the English government, through
England the rest of Europe and
through Europe the United States. The
$500, 900 democratic voters in 1896
were for silver. The 1000, 900 republi-
can voters were for a platform which
called for International blmetalllsnf.
Only the Palmer and Buckner voters
were for the gold standard-less
than l per cent, yet now the Iowa re-
publican PLATFORM goes a step farther
and is making for gold alone. More
over, the republicans threaten to retire
the greenbacks though they have eve
been before the people on that issue.
The speaker next went after the
trusts, but said if the democratic party
neglected the silver question to attend
to trusts it would rightly forfeit the
confidence of the people. The money
trust is the biggest trust of all. He
was glad that travelling men were fight
ing the Industrial trusts now, but sorry
they had not seen the logic of events
in 1896 and helped to fight the money
trusts then.
Mr.. Bryan closed his speech by a
lengthy discussion of imperialism. The
difference, he said, between a republic
and an empire is this: A republic
needs an army of $4,000 for 10000 900
people. An empire needs four times
hat large an army, when 10000, OOO
population is added. This suits the
young men who get fat jobs in the ar
my, but not the people who pay the
$1,000 a year needed to maintain each
of the soldiers in the Philippines.
This government he said, ought to
make a declaration of good intentions
towards the Philippines, as it did to-
ward Cuba. The president ought to
have done so, or if he did not have the
power, should have asked congress for
it. Now he might call a special session
to ask for the power. A special session
now would cost much money, but not
nearly so much as the continuance OF
the war.