The Washington weekly post., 1899-10-24
Attorney General Montague
on the Stump.
DEMOCRATS HAVE CLEAN RECORD
I'm Addressing n Large Meeting Mt HOus.
ton, state 0ficial Declares Present Adj
ministration Has Given Mere for schools,
Asylums, aud Pensions Than Republicans
Ever Did-Fayors Bimetaliism and De-
nOunces Trusts and the War.
Special 20 Tie Post.

Special 20 Tie Post.
Richmond. Va, Oct. Z-Attorney Cen
eral A. j. Montague made the only speech
he has delivered during the campaign at
Houston, Halifax County, to-day. There
was large crowd TO hear him. The
speech was looked forward 10 with special
interest, because of the leading part Mr..
Montague took in the May conference
and in the fight for popular selection OF
United States Senators. 1t was thought
al one time that .Ar. Montague would go
on the stump in behalf of Gov. Tyler as
candidate for the Senatorship, but he
felt that il was best that he, as attorney
general, should not take that rather deli
cate position. Mr.. Montague took occa-
sion to-day, however. to pay high COM
pliment to Gov. Tyler. The speaker said
he thought the State government had
been satisfactorily administered since the
return of the Democrats TO power. He
made direct application of this to the ju-
dicial, executive, and administrative de-
partments. He said:
Our governors have had clean admins
tratiOns. and from close personal observa-
tiCn l would say that Virginia has had no
executive since the war more devoted to
his duty, more watchful of the interests
of the people, and more desirous to save
to the Commonwealth any expenditures
than Gov Tyler"
The attorney general submitted figures
to show that the State is growing more
prosperous, and pointed to the large ap-
prOpriations TO schools, colleges, asylums,
and TO pensions as one of the most en-
couraging signs of the time. He entered
plea for better roads, and coming to
national issues he believed it to be neces-
sary TO place our finances upon a bime-
tallic basis, and declared that unless this
were done we might expect frequent re-
eurrences of panics and monetary trouble
Control of MonOpoIies.
Mr. Montague urged the necessity of
legislation TO control trusts and bring
them clearly within the common law in
hibitions against monopolies. He devoted
considerable attention to the imperialistic
policy of the administration. He would
not say that in the present wretched con-
dition of affairs in the Philippine Islands.
which he firmly believed had been BROUGHT
about by the most inefficient administra-
ton of Mr.. Mckinley, our army should
be withdrawn. He maintained, however.
that any man could read Mr. Mckinley s
purpose, and that of the Republican party
to annex these Islands as colonies
that there was no purpose of the domi-
nant party to give these people free gov
ernment. Mr.. Montague strongly COM
bated the idea that the Democratic party
had ever been party of expansion. He
said:
when Louisiana was acquired by Mr.
Jefferson he plainly admitted that he had
acted beyond the Constitution and be-
sought his friends to procure an amend
ment of the Constitution 10 ratify the act,
and it is well known that Mr.. Madison
drafted such a resolution, though it was
never submitted 10 the people"
All of the territory acquired by the
United States, however has been obtained
upon the same principles actuating the
purchase of Louisiana namely, that of
the preservation of our republic. Mr..
Montague asserted there was no consti-
tutional right to acquire or conquer the
Philippine Islands.