The Taney County republican., 1900-03-15
DEMOCRATS IN "A DILEMMA.
Trouble In the Nondescript Party
Over the Naming of Bryan
as Leader.

Speaking of the proceedings of the
recent democratic national committee
in Washington, the correspondent of
a Boston paper that supported Cleve-
land says in winding up report OF
the meeting: "Behind the scenes it
was interesting to observe that the
majority of the committeeman do not
now expect that Mr.. Bryan will be
elected" On the face of the situation
Bryan has no reasonable hope of sue
cess, and the democrats in control of
the party machinery know it perfectly
we'll. Yet all of them will declare that
his nomination is certain, and probably
by unanimous vote. There is here
something of political paradox, but
it has been brought about by sequence
of events. Time alone can deliver the
democratic party from it's singular po-
sition. It is inevitably committed to
a candidate who will be beaten, as the
managers behind him foresee. The
causes of this predicament are not
hard to find. In 1896 the democratic
party abandoned it's old creed and went
into fusion with another party. 1t
cannot retrace it's steps. It's position
is hopelessly bad, but there is none bet
ter in sight, and circumstances COM
pei it to fight the second battle on the
general alignment of the first.
Since the last presidential trial of
strength there have been three fall
elections in various states and in all of
them an evident loss of ground for the
Bryanites. The states that have left
their column are Kansas, Washington,
South Dakota and Wyoming. Maryland
went democratic last year, but on a
platform written by Mr.. German and
making no mention of free coinage.
Some suggest that the democrats
might try Germans idea in the nation
al fight this year. 1t could only be done
with some other candidate, for Bryan
and silver are synonymous. To drop
Bryan would cost the democrats all the
trans-Mississippi states that remain to
them and the gain in the eastern or
border states would be problematical.
An election practically on the German
plan was held in New York in 1898 and
the republicans carried the state, with
plurality for Roosevelt over Van
Wyck of 17,7S6. The republicans won
in New York decisively again last year
on the vote for legislature. Though
party lines were much broken in Ohio
last fall, the republican plurality was
larger than usual and the democratic
aggregate vote one of the smallest COM
paratively in the history of the state.
AS far as the facts of the political
situation are revealed the democrats
can make nothing either with Bryan
or without him. So they are disposed
to let matters drift, knowing at least
that another defeat will lessen his su-
perficial popularity, representing now,
as always, great deal more noise than
votes. The republican party holds the
vantage ground of having redeemed it's
pledges and also of having conducted
the nation through series of uneX-
pected and serious emergencies. 1t has
momentous work on hand connected
with the country's expansion and it
would not be businesslilke to turn it
over to new hands and hostile party,
bent on destroying what has been done
rather than bettering it. Possibly the
democratic national convention of
1900, like that of 1896. may be seized with
sudden impulse and do something eX-
traordinary; but no matter what tick
ct or sensation is ground out at Kan
sas City the electoral table gives the
democrats no encouragement what
ever.-St. Louis Globe-Democrat.