The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1900-07-27

OF our position as a. great nation man.
FULLY doing its part in the world work that
must be done by all great nations. True
TO their nature, that have sought to sub
ordinate this one issue on which they take
a decisive stand; and they declare that
they have subordinated the question of
free silver to other questions Now, as
matter Of fact, they cannot decide
which one Of their various heresies the
people shall regard as most important
The decision rests with the people them
selves; and those that are primarily in
terested In our financial honesty and in
dustrlal wellbeing cannot admit that any
possible difference is caused by putting
the free silver plank in one rather than
another portion of the platform. If a
man announces that he believes in the
doctrine of cowardly surrender and also
In the doctrine of reputation Of debts,
1t makes not the slightest difference as
to the order in which he puts his two
policies. Neither does it make any differ
ence whether the Populistic Democracy
to which we are now opposed lays most
stress upon its determination to debase
the currency or upon its determination
to degrade the flag We are opposed to
both propositions, and no self-respecting
citizen in making up his decision can af-
ford to neglect either
There is little need to argue against
free silver now. What need we say
against doctrine which would work
sweepingly destructive revolution in our
financial system, and yet which is ad
vanced by a party only after violent
contest in which nearly half of tina:
party has opposed it?
CAT Kansas City 1T took the Demo-
Gratis two days to determine uDon
the tree silver plank in their plat
form. The rest of the blanks dill
not need an hours work. And yet
they solenlnly ask that the two
days plank shan be relegated to Il
81 cOndary positicn!
Indeed, if their attitude on this question
were not full of such terrific possibilities
OF tragedy to the nation. 1t woult amount
to farce. My fellow townsman. Mr..
Richard Croker, the arbiter of the des-
TIMES Of the New York Democracy, has
recently evolved a theory which is en-
t1rely worthy of serious consideration bv
any men that are willing to take the
Kansas City convention itself SERIOUSLY
Mr.. Croker has announced that he thinks
congress should
Change the Ratio
every four years. so that the only thing
certain about our dollar would be that
no one ever could prophesy more than
that length Of time in advance what It
would amount to. Mr.. CrOker's nartv
associates appear inclined, it is true. to
treat his views or finance rather flip
PANTY. But in reality he is Just as much
entitled to serious treatment from them
as they are entitled to serious treatment
from us. 1t is hardly necessary to saw
that not merely free silver, but the very
threat of free silver would paralyze our
whole industrial life The election of
Mr.. Bryan would cause such economic
and financial chaos as to reduce this whole
country to a condition Of fearful and
acute distress that cannot be imagined
even by those that keep fresh in mind
the dark days Of '93, only seven years
ago. Any representatives of the Populistic
Democracy, as at present composed whom
MI. Bryan could appoint as secretary
OF state and of the treasury, would in
evitably bring this country ito the brink
of ruin; they would do even more to
harm 1t now than they would have been
able to do four years ago.
"Now, as to expansion. It hardly seems
worth while to waste any time upon what
the Kansas City people call imperialism
and militarism.
'The dominant note of the Kansas
City convention was insfncerfty.
1.-The convention which nominated Mr..
Bryan In 1900 was in character infinitely
below that which nominated him in 1896
In 1896, for all their wild and dangerous
folly, his advocates had at least the merit
Of sincerity in their bitter fanaticism.
However wrong-headed, they knew what
they believed and they stated it without
fear. In 1900 their actions were de-
termined purely by policy, and their
pandering to the lowest and most de-
graded passions in our national life, bad
enough in all conscience sake in itself, was
rendered infinitely worse because robbed
of every vestige of honesty and sincerity.
It took them two days to find out what
they believed about free silver. and this
was the only plank concerning which they
took the trouble to find out their beliefs
at all. They reasserted the doctrines OF
anarchy which they had preached in 90,
not because they longer believed in them,
but because they hoped by announcing
them to attract to themselves all men
Of unsound and violent mind. When it
came to dealing with " =. -. , -.
Our Foreign Policy
they, deliberately strove to foster resist
ance ato the national flag where such re-
sistance already exists, and to call it into
being where It does not exist. with the
hope Of gaining some petty party advant-
age atSno matter what cost OF ruin ia.
the nat lon !. They mouth about imper-
-