Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1900-09-19
M'KINLEY'S LETTER.
FORMALLY ACCEPTS
DENOMINATION.
Discusses All Issues--States that If An
other Issue Is Paramount That of
Free Coinage of silver Is Immediate
Philippine Policy Outlined.


ance is probably the most important I'M
official document issued in this country i'll
4 quarter of century. The President
axes the country into his confidence and
throws a new light upon the history Of
the past two years. Irrespective of its
caustic arraignment of the critics Of the
administration and its forceful clinching
of the fact that Organism means the
Immediate" destruction of the gold
standard and substitution therefor of free
silver coinage at the ratio of Is to l,
the letter is important in the historic
sense because it gives the American peo-
pie their first knowledge of the states
maaship and conditions connected with
recent epoch-making events.
As a campaign document the letter is
regarded as ahenomenally strong. But
1t is more than a campaign document. 1t
is contribution TO history. The Presi-
| dent deals candidly with the American
people. He is not afraid TO tell them
what he has done or why he did it. He
| deals in facts rather than in arguments.
The letter is nine newspaper columns
in length. The money question, the
trust problem, the tariff, the gold re-
serve, the lsthmian canal, and the merit
| system are discussed in turn.
| The question of imperialism is the last
| issue discussed by The President. AL
| though placed as last in Importance
ah;Jng the issues now before the people,
| President Mckinley deyotes more space
| TO the subject than for all the others
combined.
The policy of the administration in
Cuba, Porto Rico aud the Philippines is
defended at length.
On the charge of imperialism" the
President declares that the opponents Of
| the administration have failed to bring
| evidence TO support their allegation. In
| other words, he asserts that the anti-ex-
| pansonists have failed TO make a case"
To President begins his letter by a
| he irty Endorsement Of the Philadelphia
| platform. lie charges the Democratic
| pirty with forcing upon the people a
Sc ,ond battle cnon the same lines that
| resulted four years ago in a triumphant
| victrry for the gold standard aud sound
| currency. In alluding to the issue which
Is declared to be res adiudicata, the
! President kes use OF the title Of Mr..
| Bryan's book, and terms the last presis
dental campaign rs the first battle"
| SILVER fhlAt an Assues
On this question he says:
| while regretting the reopening Of this
! question, which can only disturb the
| present satisfactory financial condition
| of the government and visit uncertainty
| upon our great business enterprises, we
| accept the Issue and again invite the
| sound money forces to join IL winning
| arother and. we hope, a permanent tri-
uniph for an honest financial system
which will continue inviolable the public
| faith"
| AS in 1896, the three silver parties
are united under the same leader. who
| Immediately after the election OF that
year, in an address to the bimetallists,
| said:
| The friends of bimetalism have not
been yanquished; they have simply been
overcom, They believe that the gold
standard S a conspiracy Of the money
changers against The welfare OF the hu.
man racc-and they will continue the
warfare against IT,
President Mckinley declares that the
reafIirmation of the silver plank in the
Chicago platform by the Kansas City
convention makes the silver question the
| dominant issue in the campaign. He
says:
| Nothing has been omitted or recall &;
SO that all the per1ls then threatened are
| presented anew, with the added force Of
| deliberate renffirmAtion. Four years
ago the people refused to place the seal
of their approval upon these dangerous
and revolutionary policies. and this year
| they will not fail to record again their
earnest dissent"
| One short paragraph is devoted to the
| tariff question, in which the President
| declares that the Republican party "re-
mains faithful TO its prin ,iples Of tariff
| which supplies sufficient revenues for the
| government and adequate protection to
| our entcr priscs and producers, The time.
honored principles Of protection and re-
| ciproeity were the first pledges OF Repub'
iican victory to be written into public
| law"
In taking up the currency question the
| President insinnates that Mr.. Bryan is a
false prophet in the following quotation
| Instead Of diminishing as was pre-
dicted four years ago, the volume Of our
currency is greater per capita than It has
! ever been. 1t was S2110 in 1896. 1,
had Increased TO S2G.50 on July /, 1900
! and was S26.s5 on Sept !, 1900. Our
| total money on July /. 1896 was 81 500.
434, 96G; ON July /, 1900, it was 2,0G2,
423.49o, snd S2.09GGS3.042 on Sept /,
| 1900"
|