Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1900-10-18
SPEECH.
Able Presentation of the Issues of the
Campaign by S. G. Comstock
s Last Evening. ,.
Democratic Hypocrisies and Inconsist-
encies Laid Bare in a Mastery
] t% Manner. E Z
Large Audience Hears one Of the Best
Expositions Of the Real Issues
= Of the Campaign, /.

A-APoSAsAoAS VI Lie Neal Issues
+ Of the Campaign, d
A clean cut, able and fair presenta-
ton Of the issues of, the presidential
campaign this year was that of Hon.
s. G. Comstock of Moorhead at the
Atheneum last night. It was an ad-
dress that every voter in the county
should have heard. Devoid of -four
ish or oratorical effort, Mr.. Comstock's 5
speech was full OF. force and common
sense. He was not on the defensive
He was on the aggressive and he
stripped the shams and deceits from
the alleged democracy of today and
showed UP the fallacies and inconsist-
encles, not to say dishonesties, Of the
professions of the democratic leaders.
Beginning, Mr. Comstock alluded
briefly to the changed conditions that
prevailed now and at the time he
spoke in the city four years ago. Then
business was stagnant-industry dead.
Today business was never so good, ev-
cry industry is 1ourishing, and the
country t rejoices in such prosperity as
1t has never seen before. He wouId
refer to a single fact to prove his
case. In the 1O7 years prior to 1897.
the balance of trade of this nation
with foreign countries was 1888 600.
900. In the three years of Mr.. Nc
Kinley's administration ,@the balance
OF trade was over 1 400 millions Of dol
illaarfs Thus we had made greater
strides in advance in business by over
1000 million dollars in the past three
years than we had made in the pre-
vious 107 years. The policies of the
republican party were responsible for
this. Where five years ago we were
selling bonds in Europe at four and
i've per cent to raise money, this year
we are the financial center of the
world and foreign countries are com
ing to us for financial assistance, In
The past few years we have sold bonds,
under the administration Of McKin-
ley, for the payment of war expenses
and for refund4ng of other debt, at
'lO4 and 2 per cent bonds at that.
while England recently sold 8 per cent
bonds at a discount. These are facts
that prove the. financial standing Of
the country. 'G2.ass' -- x .7ss.>
Mr.. Comstock said it grieyed him
to note tnat nowhere in the speeches
of the democratic; opposition could he
lind an expression Of qualification or
pride for the wonderful achievements
Of this nation-for its financial ad-
.vances-for it's prosperity. The op-
position leaders seemed to have plenty
OF feeling for the. Filipinos but none
for the United States no pride in it's
institutions.
The speaker then took up seriatim
the issues of the campaign as raised
by the, democrats. He said he had
heard Mr.. Bryan speak at Fargo and
she regretted to say that he was con-
;yinced that the democratic candidate
for the high office of president was in
sincere. He was out after votes. 1t
reminded him of a story he heard of a
party on Summit avenue in st. Paul.
A democratic statesman was there and
as he gazed across at his fair partner
at the card table he observed: Miss,
we are after tricks and don't care a
d how we get ,em.'' This was
the case with Mr. Bryan. He was
after votes and he didn't care how ne
got them. ~
Mr.. Bryan began his speech, he said.
by telling about his farm. He stated
that he had five acres of oats but he
had done no threshing yet. Possibly
he made this statement to excite SYM
pathy, but it SO he failed, because ey-
eryone down that way was convinced
that he would get all the threshing he
wanted in November (laughter). Then
Mr.. Bryan went on to tell the horrors
OF militarism. He said it was the
intent OF the republican party to build
q fort near every large city and use
the soldiers to overawe all the people
whose rights were not protected by
special legislation Mr. Gomstock
did not think there was any great on
lection to the building of forts near
cities, Judging from the fact that Bis
marck had just had one established
and didn't seem TO be at all sorry
about It. He supposed that every