Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1899-03-24
OUR CANDIDATE IN 1900.

BRYAN ANSWERS
PERRY BELMONT
DECLINES TO SPEAK AT THE DEMO
CRATIC CLUB BANQUET.
Declares the Organization Has Not Changed
Its Principles Since It Denounced Him
in 1896, and Fears His yoice.Would
Only "sound q DiscordantN Note"
Chattanooga, Tenn, March 30. w.
J. Bryan to-day gave out the follow
ing correspondence to the Associated
Press, having been notified that it
had not been made public by Mr..
Belmont. Mr.. Bryan stated that he
had nothing to say about the matter,
but that the correspondence spoke
for itself:
champaign, ILL.,, March 16, $780,
Perry Belmont, President Democratic
Club, New York. Dear Sir: re-
ceived few days ago the following
telegram:
New York, March 5.-W. j..
Bryan, Lincoln, Neb. In arranging
the toasts and responses at the ban
quet Of the Democratic Club of Jeffer-
sons birthday, April 10, the COM
nittee is most DESTROYS, II your en-
gagements will permit your attend
ance, to have you select such subject
% you prefer to discuss in your own
way within the limit set for all speech
es Of twenty minutes. Please wire
reply.
Perry Belmont, President.
Richard Croker, Chairman
Upon my return to Nebraska, I
sent you the following inquiry:
:. Lincoln, Neb., March 18.-Perry
Belmont, Democrat Club, New York.
Invitation received. Remembering
that you openly repudiated the dem
ocratic platform in the last campaign,
l desire to know, before answering
invitation, whether you have, since
the election, publicly announced
your conversion to the principles set
forth In that platform.
William Jennings Bryan
i have just received yonr reply:
The invitation extended to you
is on behalf of the Democratic Club.
Individual opinions have not been
considered in issuing the invitation
to celebrate the birthday of Thomas
Jefferson.
Perry Belmont
II might plead q previous engage
ment as q reason for declining, but
that would be equivalent to saying
that would come If not for the en-.
gagement, but frankness compels me
to add another reason. appreciate
the compliment which the Democrat.
10 Club pays me in extending an invi.
tation, but / do not understand how
Individual opinions can be ignored at
q political gathering. You are the
president Of the club and represent
the club before the public. Your pc.
sition upon public questions WAS well
known In 1898, and your telegram In
dicates that your position has not
been changed.
Ny position upon public questions
Is also well known. The antagonisnl
between our opinions is so great tina,
We cannot with propriety join in 8
political banquet given in honor Of
democracy's patron saint. Jefferson
stood for certain well defined prin
oiples. II your views are correct
reflection of his ideas, fear that my
voice would sound a disoordant note
at your banquet.
II, on the other hand, the Chicago
platform applies Gas believe it does,
Jenersonian principles to presen,
conditions. then your conspicuous
presence at the Jeffersonian banquet
would not honor the memory Of ths
worlds greatest democrat.
DO not misunderstand me. Yor
may be right and may be wrong
but ! take it for granted that we ar,
equally conscientious, and trus
that I may not show myself less cour
ageous than You. You proclaimed tt
your fellow citizens In 1895 that my
election upon q democratic platform
would endanger the nations welfare
You will pardon me If 1 sugges,
that a banquet presided over by yor
viii injure rather than aid the demo
cratic party. believe in harmonizine
personal differences, but differences
In principle cannot be harmonized
and, in my judgment, no party ad
vantage is to be derived from politi
cal communion between Jeffersoniar
democrats who stand upon thu
Chicago platform and the republican
allies who masquerade as democrats
between campaigns in order to give
more potency to their betrayal O
democratic principles on election
day. Yours truly,
Nv. J. Bryan"
Ea