Omaha daily bee., 1899-04-10
BRYAN-BELMONT SQUABBLE
Nebraskas Silver Demosthenes Breaks Into
Print 0noa More.
IGNORES THE QUESTION OF A DINNER
Dcvotes Ills Attention to Controversy
Between Himself and the New
NOrker-Tcxt of the
Communication.

held In New York, but MIR. Bryan ignores
that matter and devotes his attention to the
differences existing between himself and
Mr.. Belmont on questions OF democratic
party policy. His letter in part follows:
Dear Sir-Upon my return to LiDcoln l
found your letter containing the original
letter and postscript given to the press some
days before. | cannot find anything in my
letter to which you can consistently object.
You began your speech in Madison Square
Garden on August is, 1896, by saying that
II was time for 'plain speaking and pro-
ceedcd to accuse the Chicago convention of
betrayal" Of the democratic party. In
your Brooklyn speech on September 10, 1896
you spoke of the Chicago platform as the
strange doctrines born in Chicago of a coai-
tion between the unthinking element OF
the old party and the socialists who mas
querade as populists." 1t seems that in
using the words betrayal" and "masquer-
ade' l unconsciously fell into the style
which you employed in 1896, but / did not
reflect upon the intelligence of the COLO
standard advocates by characterizing them
as an "unthinking element"
You ask, first, that j point out wherein
your utterances are "unpatriotic, undemo-
cratic unamerican and in conflict with
the democratic creed as set forth in Jetfer-
sons first inaugural address, We have
no accepted standard by which to determine
whether given opinion is patriotic or
American, but we have means of determin-
ing whether an opinion is democratic ana
In accord with the teachings of Jefferson. |
presume you use the word democratic IN
the party sense, otherwise that term would
be as difficult to define as patriotic or
american"
The right to determine what is demo-
cratic in party sense belongs to the demo-
cratic party The Chicago convention was
more purely representative than any other
convention held in recent years, because
the rank and file of the party spoke on pup
lie questions through instructed delegates.
The Chicago platform Is the latest author-
itatiye definition of democracy as applied 10
existing conditions. If a minority OF the
delegates to national convention repre-
senting a minority of the members OF the
democratic party has right to determine
what is democratic, then each member Vi
the party has right to denne democracy
for himself and to assert that ne Is a pet-
ter democrat than any one else. Let me
apply this principle to three questions upon
which you have taken position IN the
volumes sent me: First, standard money
second paper money; third, income TAX;
Jefferson favored the double standard
against the single gold standard and during
his administration our nation had the Tree
and unlimited coinage Of gold and silver at
the legal ratio of 10 to l. Inc ratlo was
changed to 16 to l during Jackson admihis,
tration. The Chicago platform pronounced
against the gold standard and In favor OF
gold and silver at the ratio of l6 to Win
out waiting for the aid or consent OF any
other nation. AS a delegate TO the CnlcaSo
convention you voted for minority report
which declared against independent Tree
coinage on the ground that 1t would not
only imperil our finance but would retard
or entirely prevent International bimetal-
lsm to which the effort OF the government
should be steadily directed
AS delegate to the Indianapolis conVen-
ton two months later you supported plat
form which declared in favor OF the gold
standard without any declaration in favor OF
international bimetalism. You may be able
to explain why the minority rejected at the
indianapolis convention the plank for which
1t fought at Chicago.
Mr.. Mckinley, in 1891, charged in public
speech that Mr.. Cleveland during his hrst
administration was dishonoring one of the
precious metals, discrediting silver ana en-
hancing the price of gold. He Insisted that
Mr.. Cleveland was trying to make money
scarce and therefore dear" and added he
would have increased the value OF money
and diminished the value OF everything
else Money the master and everything else
the servants" If Mr.. Mckinley then under
stood the real purpose of the gold standard
as believe he did, who could think Jeter-
son capable of advocating policy which
instead of securing equal and exact justice
for all, makes money the master and every
thing else the servant"
Mr.. Carlisle in speech in 1878 said:
"The conspiracy to destroy by legislation
and otherwise from three -sevenths to one
half OF the metallic money OF the world Is
the most gigantic crime of this or any other
age" II Mr.. Carlisle was then right, as |
believe he was, in his denuncation of the
standard who can believe Jefferson capable
of being a party to such crime? After
the election Mr.. Mckinley sent com
mission to Europe to secure nterna-
nal ntI in i'm rid nf a
and republican congress appropriated the
money to pay the expense of the commission.
The commission failed because of English
opposition and English opposition was due to
the opposition of the English iinanciers. JEFF
ferson democrats must have better reason I
for submitting to the gold standard than the
fact that the English tinanciers favor 1t as
means for raising the purchasing power OF
their money.
| have selected these three questions be-
cause they are important and because your !
position upon them has been clearly defined. /
Your speech abounds in expressions of con-
fidence on the gold standard, your corre- |
spondence with Mr.. Warner sets forth your |
opposition to the income tax and news |
paper item, quoted in your book, gives you |
credit for drafting that portion of the In !
dianapolis platform which related to the re-
tirement of the greenbacks and the substitu-
ton Of bank currency.
Your prophecy that "a law to prevent !
wage earners and salary earners from de- |
manding and securing payment in gold dol /
lars would not be winning issue" evnces ,
a tender solicitude for the laboring man. |
might suggest that bimetallism alarms you
more than it does the wage -oarners. 1t was .
not the employees who were frightened at the /
specter of free silver in 1896; neither did the .
laboring men share your desire to add to
the privileges of the banks. On December |
20, 1897 year after the election, the Fed /
grafton of Labor adopted the following
Resolved, That we declare ourselves most |
opposed to the Gage financial bin |
recently introduced in congress by the secre-
ary of the treasury. 1t is a measure that,
Il adopted as law, will only the more !
irmly rivet the gold standard on the people
If the country and perpetuate its disastrous
effects In every form.
Resolved, That We pronounce the Gage
dill as an undisguised effort to retire our
sreenback currency and all government pa
per money, with view to the substitution
If national bank notes in their stead and |.
hus fasten the national bank system for
ears upon the American people"
| am not willing to believe that you are
more interested in the laboring men than
hey are in themselves, or that you know
,eSter than they what Is good for them.
Yours truly, w, J. BRYAN.
Frost for FusiOnists.
CHADRoN. Neb.. April 9.-(special.) THE
natby mhich aXists in fusion DOlitical