The labor world., 1899-03-25
by IhOS. Il. Hill.
r II seems singular that William Jel

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TT seems singular that William Jen-
nings Bryan will sit on the fence
and allow the political procession
to go by him, insisting that he will
| only join in the parade when they
carry banner inscribed THE Chicago
Platform with Free Silver at 1G to H.
Mr.. Bryan ought to know that free
silver is one of the deadest issues that
was ever laid out as a corpse.
1t was only an issue in 1896 because
t he country was i'm the throes Of finan-
bank failures in the United States
from 1892 to 1896. and through an in
genious argument by Coin Harvey that
these failures were the result Of de-
monetizing silver in 1873.
All business had been shut down in
consequence of these bank failures.
The rich were buying up property at
their own price and rapidly becoming
richer. while several millions OF peo-
pie stood impoverished and in idle
ness.
The people were ready to clutch at
+; ,ything (which might possibly be Il
remedy for distressed conditions and
it was easy to make an unthinking
multitude believe that if you could
dump in upon the country a double
amount OF money in the shape of sill
YER that all would be well.
It was at this juncture that the
Democratic party was looking around
for an issue. Cleveland had sunk the
whole party so nearly out of sight
that there seemed to be nothing left of
it. The case was desperate. But
luckily the free silver brig hove in
sight and there seemed hope. The
Democratic convention convened i'll
Chicago. The situation was critical.
The leaders fixed up platform with
free silver as a central plank, and at
an opportune time Bryan, made a
speech to the convention which so
treated on evils known to exist as to
be received with great favor by the
masses.
Everybody is familiar with the vigor-
GUS canvass which Bryan made
throughout the country, and at one
time it looked so strongly in Bryan's
favor that the Republican managers
had to go right down in their pockets
in order to beat him and they did. Mr..
Bryan was left. But he has an idea
yet that he was right, notwithstand-
ing that money is so abundant in the
banks that it is a drug in the market.
We are sorry for Mr.. Bryan, sorry
| that he does not know that he is poll
tically dead. True, he has made a
little stock out of anti-imperialism,
but that will be short-lived; and as an
| issue, is SO weak today that when
Senator Mason came on to Chicago 4
| few days ago and made al address at
Central Music Hall on the subject, less
than three hundred people came out
to meet him.
Mason was good deal chagrined to
| think that he, a senator, speaking IL
behalf of a benevolent cause in his
own city should have such Il small
audience-so small that he called at
tention to the fact, several times in
his discourse. But the facts are that
the people are tired Of hearing the sub
iect discussed. They know that Ma
son, the yellow journals and lot O.
Jealous orators drove Mckinley into
the war against his will. \ war thai
has already cost the country ove1
6,OOO lives, hundreds Of millions of dol
lars, with the end not vet. They know
that in the shuttle we have the Philip
pines on hand with lot of half civil
lied natives which they must contro
in order to protect white people il
Manilla. The people know all this ane
for Bryan and Mason to be spending
their time now, harpng on antrim
peralsm is like a poS1-mortem review
Of battle telling what might have
been done if the battle had beer
fought another way.
The facts are that the administra
ton will settle the difficulty with the
Filipinos as cheaply and as quickly
rs they can. the whole advancing tht
civilization Of the people of the Philip
pine Islands.
We repeat we are sorry for Bryan
Sorry. because, we once had great ad
mirolion for him. He did really
great educational work in his canvass
OF the country. He led the people