Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-01-16
ANOTHER CHANGE or F40HT.

The aptitude of the democratic press
for weather-cock politics is finding an
other vivid illustration in the vigorous
hedging process now going on In respect
70 the policy of expansion. After fight
ing expansion in all its forms for a year
past. with all the energy which the ed'-
torial pen could command, the bourbon
organs are veering around into an en-
dorsement of tina policy. They are now
actively engaged in the work OF explain
ing that an~ti-expansion does not mean
opposition to expansion, except under
certain conditions. This discovery has
been made quite recently.
An investigation into the drift of public
sentiment has shown the democratic
leaders tina no hopes of carrying any OF
the Pacific coast states could be enter
tanned with the party uaqualifiedly COM
mitted 10 anti-expansion. New York
and several of the southern states gave
evidence Of disgust with the democracy,
on account of it's persistent warfare
against the expansion idea, and for
months the New York Journal has
begged and pleaded with it's party cad
ers to abandon it's opposition to a policy
so clearly in the right. 1t pointed out
the defeat Of the democratic party in
Ohio last fall, unless it changed its
tactics on that important issue, II
after the election called attention to the
prophecy it had made.
Recently, Mr.. Bryan saw a great light.
1t occurred to him that he could no
longer fight the expansion sentiment of
this country with impunity. Then came
some grand and lofty tumbling to get
into a position of greater political COM
fort. Interviews We're published show
ing that Mr.. Bryan was not opposed to
exp~ansion-that he had been misunder-
stood by the American public. If there
was any one thing in the world that he
loved more thar another is was expan-
sion! Did not jefferson believe in ex-
pansion? Is not Bryan a second edition
of the Trainer of the declaration of in
dependence? Why should not the Ana
conda Standard veer around from its
bitter fight against expansion during the
past year, and now declare
The democratic party is not in an,
proper sense opposed to expansion if i
be of the right kind, and come about il
the right way.
There you are! Expansion is all right
just as the. Inter Mountain has beel
claiming all along-provided it is of tn
right kind. AS a matter of consistency
and to protect itself from ridicule, tn
democracy must qualify it's newly Dor
belief in expansion in some way. Hence
the suggestion that it must be of tn
right kind! No only does the Standar
reverse the lever of it's think-tank, i
coming out for expansion, but it stand
so straight IN the proposition that
leans backward. Listen to this:
With the exception Of ice-boun
Alaska, and the Hawaiian islands,. ever
addition to the American territory frol
CHe lays OI tHe reVOlutlOn TO the Ou1
break of the war with Spain, was tn
work of the democratic party. and til
opposition invariably came from the pt
litical forces from which the republica
party chiefly sprang.
There you have it again! The dem,
cratic party has preserved the expansic
idea from going to seed! 1t was the fir
in the field with the expansion polio
therefore the democratic party of tods
is entitled to all the credit for expaI
sion! Within three months the Stan
ard will be bowling for an expansi,
plank in the national platform OF
party.
Having for the past year argued wi
great energy against the policy of e
p~ansion. as Inconsistent with the spi
of American institutions and destructi
of our form of government, the dem
cratic party has made a long stri
toward the progressive example set
the republicans. when 1t is willing to &C
cede that the principle of expansion
. ..right.Having acknowledged the CORE
ness of the principle of expansion, it