New-York tribune., 1900-07-20
the good of mankind, may one day bring the
federation OF the world.
nEMnCRATIC TACTICS.


We are to have three cornered duel again.
It is the device which the shallowest political
tricksters usually prefer to all others, because
they hope that in some mysterious fashion an
unfair advantage may be gained. While the
Republican candidate is to be asSailed by all
factions, the Democratic candidate is expected
to escape the shots fired at free silver and
monetary insanity, the ground that the
Bryan who is misbehaving on that subject is
the Populist. Mr.. Bryan the Democratic can
didate declares in his platform that imperialism
is the paramount issue and at the same time
hopes that it will not be, for without the silver
fanatics he would lose a great share of his
support.
1t is not injustice TO say that the denDerate
intention is to gain dishonesty on both sides
It is hoped that multitudes will be cheated by
the pretence that the silver issue is dead, and
will vote for the silver leader on some other
account although on that question they would
never support him. Even while this sort Of
fraud captures some it is hoped that others will
be caught to vote for the candidate on the plea
that the issue about injunctions and also the
issue about Imperialism never had any real sub
stance. All these sharp tricks appear to Repub-
licans too thin and impotent for great contest
Yet they have to remember that the shallow
Democratic politician is after all, the man who
best ComDre1enQS ana actually IeduS Lue NOlSES
who make up Bryan's force.
Democratic demagogism has been weak be-
cause it has had no hold upon the practical
business interests of working Americans 1t has
In one breath denounced the desire for protec-
ton of home industries as a sham which never
effected anything and as a robbery which
plundered the many for the benefit Of the few.
1t cannot be both; men of sense know that it
is neither Stern experience has compelled
millions Of voters to realize that the people are
actually plundered and prostrated by placing
Democracy in power The voters who have
this we'll defined and strong reason for oppos-
ing Democracy under any and every pretext or
disguise are not likely to be found fewer than
they were four years ago. Mr.. Bryan and his
friends think that the millions cannot remem-
Der, but we shall see whether they read cor
rectly the minds of those who defeated them
in 1896.
Starting with that powerful body of voters
against them, the Democratic politicians of to-
day fail to perceive that they are in fact only
devsing various dishonest tricks for the pur-
pose of preventing a considerable further loss
of votes. On the silver question there is now
not the slightest preteXt for asserting that a
financial revolution is necessary to save the
business of the country from prostraton. On
that issue there is every reason to expect that
the party will lose votes which it retained in
1896 On the foreign issue there is every reason
TO believe that the conduct Of the Government,
its success in war and its extension of Ameri-
can influence have gained the enthusiastic ap-
prOval of millions of Democrats whose votes
that party would lose unless its shallow pre-
tences about imperialism could retain them. At
every point it Is only a desperate struggle by
the Democrats to prevent a greater and more
complete defeat than they sustained in 1896;
but their defeat on that occasion was surely
sufficient