Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-07-18

age issue to the background. With none
to c~riticise the gentlemen who are so in.
dustriously working to place some ques-
ton other than free coinage to the fore
front as a democratic slogan for 1900
their work would proceed with much
wires would be securely laid before the
rank and file of silver men throughout
the country realized the full force Of their
intentions.
But the Inter Mountain has repeatedly
called the attention of the reading public
to the dangers that threaten the silver
cause through an effort on the part OF
the democratic leaders to effect a union
of the eastern and western wings of that
party on a financial platform satisfac-
tory to each. If the democratic press OF
Montana We're loyal to the free coinage
issue. as they pretend to be. they would
not only approve the work of the Inter
Mountain in exposing the false friends
of silver in the democratic party, but
they would supplement it's efforts by
work in the same direction. In attacking
the Inter Mountain and raising a ques-
ton as to its motives. they betray their
sympathy with the general movement
that is going on within their party to
place silver in the background and make
some other question the paramount issue
! of 1900.
No more satisfactory evidence of the
disloyalty of the local democratic press
is made of the men who are scheming
and planning to relegate the free coinage
issue to the rear. The more fragrant at
tempts in this direction are passed in
silence by these professcd defenders of
the silver faith, while the work of smaller
men is discounted as of no public i'm
portance. In no instance whatever has
any democratic newspaper in Montana
had the courage to protest against the
supplanting of the silver issue with some
other paramount question. though the
national leaders Of that party and men
high in its councils have repeatedly de-
clared that the free coinage issue cannot
be taken up as of chief Importance in
the forthcoming campaign.
If the so-called silver democratic press
of Montana had a 1.-THE of the courage
49, ~-o,.- 1.,l.l:..l T., A. ..1.-.-
publicans in 1896 they would bitterly crit
lcise every democratic leader who VEN
lures the suggestion that the free coinage
issue should be ~relegated to the real.
They would declare undying hostility to
the movement that would place anti
imperialism. antitrust or anti any old
Silver cause. They know that all this
talk in democratic circles about aban-
doning the paramount issue of 1896, in
order to push more important ques-
tons to the front, is based on a desire
on the part of democratic leaders to get
away from the free coinage proposition
q Ci+ouSi 'ohpNi liiC wv 't7Nol uaiIl
wings of the national democracy to get
together on common ground.
And this movement has the tacit con-
sent of every millionaire democratic
sheet in the state of Montana. Not one
of them is in touch with the true inter-
ests of the silver cause. They are trying
to lull the people into a fancied security.
while heartily in sympathy with the eff
forts that are now being put forth to
reunite the "~silver'' and gold" wings
of the democracy on some
issue other than the free coinage slogan
Of 1896. To this end they are adroitly
trying to prove to their readers that a
very insignificant number of silver re-
publicans and populists voted for Bryan
in the last presidential campaign, the IN
ference being that the democracy has
more to gain by retaining it's gold wing
| organizations.
The Inter Mountain can render no
greater service to the true interests OF
silver than TO eXpose the despicable
hypocrisy with which the democratic
leaders are treating the problem of free
coinage. In juggling with the question
last year, and ignoring the policy of CO.
operation, they lost the control of con-
gress, thus absolutely tying the hands of
a silver president We're one elected, and
now they are planning to place the issue
so far in the rear that it will not inter-
fere with an opportunity to get to the